Phoenix Gear
by The Impostor
Summary: In the year X820, recent PHD Graduate Margaret Andersson is faced with a dilemma, join a guild or be unemployed. Taking the situation in stride, she accepts a position of Master of Phoenix Gear, Fiore's lowest ranked guild. Their low status won't stop her though, she'll make it to the top, one new mage at a time. SYOC-Open!
1. The Student and the Desperate Guild

**A/N: New Fairy Tail SYOC. Try as I might, I can't leave this fandom behind, and I think it's high time I returned to form with this. This SYOC is a little different in that you the OC creator will have a substantial hand in shaping the guild through the OC and plot points you send. Special thanks also to Origm2012 and MyDearWatson for helping to fill out the initial roster of the guild a bit.**

**15 May X820, King's University, Karlsborg, Iceberg.**

A Black Hat.

It seemed odd in her hands, and as a symbol of her achievements, it seemed just as strange. It was not that the woman holding it lacked the skill. Her dissertation was deemed excellent, it was that, she was, by all appearances, a mess. At age 27, Margaret Andersson had abandoned all pretense that she cared a bit how others perceived her, and yet, here she was, desperately trying to make academia like her enough to let her teach the same stripe of ungrateful brat. Her work on the dynamics of barrier particles in seemingly naturalistic biomes, particularly in the far north of her native country was considered promising if nothing else, and yet, there was not a single university in Iceberg that took her. What few professors retired that year had their seats filled by those with better connections. It was hardly fair, but really, what was? Thaumaturgical Dynamics was a growing field, and many guilds needed mages, obviously, but the study of magic, that was something fewer seemed to care about. Margaret was snapped out of her musings by a buzzing sound from the lacrima on her desk. She dropped the hairbrush attempting to tame her voluminous auburn hair, and tripped on the way to clear the notification.

"All right, call Professor Lindqvist." She said, as the crystal sprang to life and displayed the face of a bearded man.

The man on the other side of the lacrima sighed. "I'm sorry…" he began.

The hat buckled in Margaret's grip. "No one needed a professor of Thaumaturgy?"

"No. I would suggest guild work."

"You know that's not me!" Margaret shot back, indignantly.

"Miss Andersson-"

"Don't call me that! I didn't spend 800,000 Jewels becoming, and I quote, 'the brightest thaumaturgical theorist you had ever had the pleasure of teaching,' to have you tell me I couldn't teach and research magic." Margaret fumed, deciding it best to keep the top hat on her desk, for fear of damaging it in her grasp.

"I see you're in no mood. We'll discuss further options tomorrow at the ceremony." The professor sighed, as he logged off, leaving the lacrima to turn out its light.

Margaret buried her face in her hands. "fuck me." She sighed, as she heard a knock on the door.

"Margaret, are you ready to go?" the voice called out.

"Just need another second, Isolde." Margaret responded, as she picked up the hairbrush and threw a stately red cloak over her blue dress and white heels. Isolde informed her the bar was a bit upscale, and so she dressed for the occasion. The cloak itself felt a bit weighted, and Margaret was fairly sure she remembered the implements stored therein.

Isolde walked in, her blonde hair in a braid and was dressed in a black evening gown with black flats. She always seemed elegant, as though she didn't have to try to fit in with this world. Ten years ago, Margaret would have hated her, made her out to be everything wrong with the world, nothing like a true doer such as herself. Here, so close to finishing graduate school, Margaret had softened.

"All right, I'm ready to go."

"Cool, I'll get Jin Huang."

Margaret followed Isolde out of the former's room, and encountered their other housemate, Jin Huang, a fellow from well east of Pergrande, dressed in a respectable suit.

"How's it going Jin?" Margaret asked, with a sincere smile.

"It's going fine, congrats on the PHD, I don't know how you did it in five years, it'll take at least…" Jin stopped to count, his short, slight frame swaying slightly as this was going on.

"Look, either way, Margaret getting to it that fast calls for a celebration! Let's get going," Isolde offered, shepherding the other two to the door.

* * *

The city of Karlsborg had become a familiar sight to Margaret, with its cobblestone construction, enchanted buildings giving off the needed light and heat for a capital this far north, and of course the ever-present snow. Some may have called it miserable, but Margaret didn't know much else. This was the only city she'd ever known, and now, she was on the verge of leaving. Of course, she didn't have too many options on where to go…

"Give up your magic to the great Enoch!" A voice rang out from another street corner. Sven, the same damn preacher who was always there.

"God, does that asshole ever shut up?" Margaret fumed.

"Don't let him ruin your night," Isolde said, as they passed their normal meeting spot for a more modern looking building several streets over.

"The Elven Heart," Jin read off of the sign. "Seems a little violent…"

"I think it's nice," said Margaret, although her simultaneous anxiety and frustration had only been building in the same moment. Maybe it would work out; after all, Isolde's senses were rarely wrong.

The trio entered into a stately ballroom, and began scoping out the room. As it turned out, the venue was divided into a few enclosures, within a dance floor. High society types seemed to be mixing, along with one trio of individuals who seemed thoroughly out of place in their ballroom attire. Margaret eyed them suspiciously.

"Now I know you're dealing with a lot, but here's hoping the alcohol will take the edge off…" Isolde said, with a smile.

"Easy for you to say, you've already gotten a cushy desk job on the new Magic Council." Sighed Margaret.

Isolde was taken aback, but bounced back. "How about a round of champagne?"

It wasn't long before Margaret had torn through the entire bottle that Isolde had ordered, her face flush and her disposition still angry.

"And tell me why you two get to go on and do great things and I'm stuck even with the same PHD!" Margaret shouted, much more accusatory than either housemate than either had come to expect from the normally introverted and demure woman.

At this point, the collective of five or so misfits began stirring as well.

"Heh, check out the balls on that girl." Laughed the leader. He was a tall man with unkempt blue hair, a scar across the right side of his mouth, and a slender frame.

"No tolerance at all." Agreed a woman whose eyes seemed to change type and color at random. Both the pupils and irises shifted, with no consistency at all. Her black hair and average height were much more normal, and yet it was clear that her magic was not typical.

"Well, you know, it's a perfect distraction. " Said the third, an uncommonly tall man with glasses and long nutbrown hair.

"Right, time to rejoin the others." The first said with a half-smile, as he and the other two left the dance floor, headed for a back door.

"Fuck it, imma go for a smoke!" Margaret said, as she noticed the three steal away through the back door.

"I thought you were quitting." Isolde said, with a slight disapproval.

"Nah I'm in a nic fit…" She muttered, as she walked out the same door.

"Jin, make sure she gets back in here safely, it's too cold for her to be out there alone." Isolde instructed, as she began to scan all of the doors.

"Sure thing." Jin said.

The cold wasn't something that much bothered Margaret, as she leaned herself up against the wall of the building, and took out a wooden pipe. She drew out a tobacco pouch and lit it with a match.

"Well hello there." The leader of the strange trio said, a fake-looking grin on his face. "What's a pretty lady like you doing out on the streets of Karlsborg on a night like this?"

"Smoking." Margaret said, curtly.

"I can see that!" the figure said. "Now here's the deal. We're about to do something of a business transaction, and if we're successful, I'll buy you anything you like… Then we'll do something a bit nasty.

"Buzz off. You're not exactly my type." Margaret muttered, as she pulled on her pipe and blew the smoke into his face.

"You've got some nerve refusing my hospitality!" The man shouted, as he activated a light blue magic circle and plunged it into the ground.

"Kristian, you can find another girl." The black haired woman said. "We have a job to do. In the same moment, a contingent of eight others emerged.

"Master Kristian!" The lead member shouted.

"All right, it looks like we're going to have a problem." Margaret sighed, as she extinguished her pipe and placed it back in her cloak.

"Nice try!" Kristian laughed, as he launched his spell forward, it was a beast made of pure snow, something like a lion. The hit was direct, and Margaret seemed to be buried under a deluge of white powder.

"Are you satisfied now?" Nutbrown hair asked.

In the same moment, the snow itself rumbled, and Margaret emerged, dark blue fire on her hands.

"What the hell is going on out back. Margaret?" Isolde wondered aloud, as she made a break for the door, catching Jin on the way. The two burst out onto the alleyway and were soon joined by many of the other patrons. The scene in front of them was strange. Margaret took a fighting stance, and 11 dark mages stood opposite her.

"I've never seen Margaret fight." Jin admitted to his slightly older compatriot.

"To be honest, I'm more worried about the dark mages…" answered Isolde.

Kristian laughed. "You decided to learn blue fire magic in Iceberg!?" He managed before clutching his side.

"Try again. Now let me ask you something." Margaret responded.

"Shoot," Kristian Managed through laughter.

"Have you ever come across the idea of Planar Thaumaturgy?"

"No…" Kristian muttered, his laughter gone.

"Well you see, the barrier particles that naturally occur in the air are where almost all mages gain their ethernano reserves. Your body processes the particles, and gives you your magical reserves. As such, the concentration of particles, quality of particles, and the body's unique magical efficiency normally determine how powerful a caster mage will be. The thing is, that isn't the only source." Margaret explained, more indignant by the word.

"Shut up with the science lesson!" Kristian shouted, nervously, as the incident had attracted a crowd.

"As I was saying," Margaret said, her own voice seemingly competing for dominance. "There are also planes, separate from ours by the slightest mote, where barrier particles also exist. In recent years, with their discovery, experimental magic has been developed by the world's leading thaumaturgical scientists to exploit these planar particles, often using them in the user's own magic. I have developed one such style to this very end. The plane known as Tophet. This is fire magic enhanced with Tophet planar energy!" With that, Margaret sent a deluge of flames forward, enveloping the party in front of her. After the flames cleared, only the original three were left standing.

"Our turn! Annelise, you're up!" Kristian declared, as the woman began focusing her gaze intently on Margaret, to no avail.

"No use, her control over ethernano is too good." The brunette sighed, as she closed her eyes.

At this point, Kristian's annoyance changed to fear, borne out in his eyes. "What are you?" He demanded.

"No point in telling you." Margaret muttered, as she raised her right arm and summoned a small collective of constructs that resembled jellyfish, swimming aimlessly through the air. The jellies converged on the remaining three, all of whom collapsed instantly.

At this point, the crowd erupted into thunderous applause as Margaret's buzz from adrenaline and nicotine faded, and she slumped against the wall, where Isolde and Jin collected her.

"You've had enough living for one night. Let's get you home." Isolde insisted.

* * *

Margaret awoke to her older housemate's gentle nudging. While she didn't remember much of the previous night, she felt a throbbing in her head. How drunk had she gotten. "Isolde?" She muttered, as she sat up.

"You'd be amazed by what just happened," Isolde said, as she slid a crate on the other side of Margaret's bed towards her.

"What's this?" Margaret asked, some of her faculties restored, as she rummaged through the papers in the box.

"A messenger dropped them off this morning. These are all offers from guilds."

"Guilds? This morning?" Margaret sighed, as she looked through the letters.

"Dear Ms. Andersson,

We are excited to extend an offer of membership in the ranks of Fairy Tail, the most renowned guild in all Fiore. While our process for ascension to S-Class status precludes such a promotion for a new member, your abilities should qualify you for immediate status as a mage, and qualification for high level, lucrative jobs. Travel to Magnolia in Fiore if you are interested.

Sincerely,

Erza Heartfilia-Scarlet, 9th Master, Fairy Tail guild.

Margaret tossed the letter aside. "What else is in here…" She muttered aloud, as she dug through the contents of the box. A quick search later revealed perhaps the most odd offer of them all.

"Ms. Andersson,

We understand that our guild may be small and lack reputation, and that with your considerable feat you must have many standing offers. However, we feel compelled to extend yet another offer to you, this one for the position of guild master. Phoenix Gear's second master has died in recent days, and consequently, we are seeking a new master. Should you choose to accept this offer, come to the town of Estrecho, near the Ishvan Autonomous Region in Fiore

With kind regards,

Grace Montague, Ace, Phoenix Gear Guild."

"I doubt you'd take that one. That guild's never had more than ten members, dead last in all of Fiore," Isolde said. "By the way, you missed the graduation ceremony, but I got your doctorate for you," Margaret was handed a leatherbound copy.

"What did I even do last night? I thought I just fought a few street punks," muttered Margaret.

"If you call the Fallen Angel dark guild 'street punks,' Isolde responded.

"I did what?"

"You singlehandedly defeated the master of a dark guild that legal guilds had been trying to bring down for three years, that's why you got all of these letters," Isolde explained.

"That's great, I'm going to get some more sleep," Margaret sighed, as she rolled back over.

"Don't forget, the lease ends in four days, so make you plans quickly." Isolde said, as she left the room.

* * *

"You know, some would consider skipping your own graduation ceremony and calling your mentor on Lacrima after midnight to be something of a transgression." Professor Lindqvist said.

"Well you're awake." Said Margaret.

"Fair enough." He sighed. "What do you hope to discuss.

"Well, I gave it some more thought, and I might just want to take a guild job," Margaret explained.

"Excellent, and I understand you received several offers from guilds across Ishgar after last night," Lindqvist said, with a smile.

"Yes, and I'm thinking about it. This one guild I hadn't heard of, Phoenix Gear, wants me as a guild master," Explained Margaret "That's the one sticking in my head."

"It could be said that a guild master's role is not unlike that of a professor. It would be your responsibility to find and develop thaumaturgical talent, and to encourage powerful mages, the main difference is it's practice as opposed to theory, and it typically pays quite a bit better," her mentor explained. "Of course, Phoenix Gear is a struggling guild in this day and age. It will naturally take more effort and time than most can give to make it a success…"

"Well when have you heard of me refusing a challenge?" Margaret asked with a laugh.

"Very well."

* * *

Three days later.

"Damn, you cleaned the entire apartment?" Isolde asked, inspecting the kitchen counter.

"What, don't tell me you forgot why you'd ever put up with me!" Joked Margaret.

"I know I can depend on you, even when you're drunk and haven't smoked in a few days," Isolde responded, more sincerely.

"All right, I'll write and call both of you," Margaret said, fighting her tears, hoping not to show herself vulnerable.

"See you around!" She declared, as she made her way to the train station for the first time in her life, and boarded for Estrecho in Fiore.

* * *

"Hello!" Margaret was greeted immediately by two things, the first being an oppressive heat for which her attire of a blue and white jacket, buttoned shut, jeans, and a red cloak was thoroughly inappropriate, the second was a white Exceed with patches of black fur.

"Are you the contact?" Margaret asked.

"Yes indeed, I am Ptarmigan, Grace and I traveled some distance before we made our way to Phoenix Gear," the exceed said in a perfect Svenish accent, before taking a subtle bow. The voice reminded her of Isolde.

"Excellent, and you wanted to show me the guild hall?" Margaret asked, as she noted the comparatively sparse nature of Estrecho's train station.

"Certainly, follow me," Ptarmigan instructed, leaving the station with Margaret in tow.

* * *

The streets of Estrecho were dilapidated, and the occasional SE Plug vehicle was frequently tossed across the common streets thanks to the potholes. Businesses also lined the streets, yet almost all were boarded up. A smog covered the area, and based on Margaret's own estimation, the last of these things was itself magical in nature. The area seemed to be suffering, and that there was a legal guild there at all was more surprising than anything else.

"We're here," said Ptarmigan, as they rounded a corner to a crumbling but respectable looking guild hall, which featured multiple spires, a courtyard before the circular building, and the guild's symbol in a red-orange shade on a torn banner over the door. "It's not much, but it's home."

Margaret's doubts had begun to well up in her throat, and yet in the same moment, she found herself excited. If anything, the guild felt something like her. Humble roots, to be sure, but damn it if she couldn't make something great out of it, just as she had herself.

* * *

As the young woman had few possessions herself, Margaret's office was fairly sparse, only a few statues and models on her desk complemented the small, circular room away from the main hall.

"What are you doing, master Margaret?" Ptarmigan asked.

"I recall you said that we only have six active mages, and they're all away on jobs right now," Margaret responded in kind. "I got to thinking, we ought to grow our base. There's no way this guild will be a success without more members," Margaret motioned to a stack of papers. "Thankfully, I can make copies with magic. You're an exceed, you can fly. Go send these out across Fiore, maybe even further."

"Sure thing!" Said Ptarmigan, as he read out the letter that had been slid over to him.

"To whom it may concern:

The Phoenix Gear guild is growing. While we may have little now, it will be through your help that we gain fame and renown. If you hope to prove yourself, to show the doubters wrong, and to make your mark as a guild mage, we want to hear from you. To all those mages interested in joining Phoenix Gear, come to Estrecho, on the border of Fiore and the Isvan Autonomous Region, and inquire within our hall. I look forward to our meeting.

With great optimism,

Margaret Andersson, 3rd Master, Phoenix Gear Guild.

A/N: Okay! Now it's your turn, send out an OC using the following form, and be sure to follow the few extra rules as well.

Rule 1: Please PM me. In the interest of keeping the review section easier to read, I will not be accepting OCs submitted through reviews. Although it is not precisely a requirement, please give me the name of the OC you are submitting in the subject line, so that I can find relevant information about characters and concepts more easily.

Rule 2: Your OC cannot be the child of canon characters. There may be a connection to canon cast members in your characters' backstory, but the canon cast will only appear if and when I have a good reason to add them to an arc. For further background, most of the canon cast is between 40 and 50 at the start of this story. Wendy, at 44, is the youngest member of the canon cast.

Rule 3: Your character's magic must be somewhat balanced. I won't take a character whose magic can't be countered in some way.

All right, here's a copy of the bio, and if you'd rather copy/paste, peep the version on my profile. I hope to hear from friends and fans old and new. Until next time!

(Please delete the stuff in the parentheses, it makes the bio easier to read if you do).

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	2. New Mages and Mysterious Debt

**A/N: All right, chapter 2 is here! And I've made a few decisions for the final cast roster. I've decided to limit the guild mage membership to 25 user-submitted characters. Currently, there are 11 either submitted or in the works. That means that there are 14 spaces still open for the main guild. There will also be opportunity to make characters for the Grand Magic Games; you can make up legal guilds for that and a few other arcs, or create mages for canon legal guilds. I'll determine a more concrete list of canon and fanon guilds for the GMG. Dark mages and guilds are cool too. Also, if there's a particular plot point you want to build an arc around, I accept that too. You'd be making OCs for any arcs you suggest. With all of that worked out, let's get this started!**

* * *

**25 May X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore.**

"What do you mean you still haven't seen the master's quarters?" The old woman asked, as she looked down at a reclined Margaret in her office.

"You guys have some major debts, I've just been working them out," Margaret explained, as she blinked, trying to chase the sleep from her eyes.

"Wait, those were being ignored!" The woman said, a bit nervous.

"Then it's no wonder you guys can't take out loans..." sighed Margaret. "Grace, we have to do things a bit differently from now on."

The older woman, whom Margaret learned was Grace Montague, was shorter than Margaret by a few inches, at 5'5" and wore a white knit jacket, khaki pants, and a powder blue blouse. Her hair was wavy and gray, which contrasted with her bright blue eyes. She gave a disappointed look. "Well how else did master Marcus get the hall made?" She wondered aloud, as she spun, weakly at her age, and directed her to an ancient picture hung on the wall in the master's office. "I haven't been young since the first master left, I think I might know a thing or two!"

Margaret sighed. "You know you called me here..."

Grace didn't have a response, as Margaret stared into the picture. The first master was a middle-aged man of thin construction, with brown hair and thick glasses. Grace stood beside him, younger than Margaret was now. Her hair was as blue as her eyes back then, she wore a long, double-breasted coat and black boots. The scene was winter, and there were others there, none of whom Margaret recognized.

"Marcus, that was his name?" Margaret asked, genuinely curious.

"Yes, and well, the guild's only gotten worse since he left those 25 years ago," Grace sighed as she coaxed Margaret out into the main hall. "The team left for an S-Class job the night before you came in, they should be back no," Ptarmigan said, as the two walked into the main room. Margaret had never paid it much mind before, but she could see where some of the debt came from. While it was in a bit of disrepair, the guild hall was a massive building, with a cathederal-esque construction. The windows were stained glass, in geometric patterns, and the offices and back door of the guild were on a raised platform a few steps up from the main hall. In place of pews, there were tables, some long, some circular, around which mages were supposed to congregate, and a bar to the left coming in. There seemed to be doors leading to a neglected kitchen a few feet further back from the bar. The bar was stocked, and seemingly the only portion of the area not neglected, while the tables were flipped, the balconies' railings chipped and the various games, pool, foosball, and a few arcade machines, seemed damaged, the bar was immaculate.

"Who keeps the bar so nice?" Margaret asked, noting that it seemed egregious, compared to the surroundings.

"One of the mages out on a job now," Grace explained. "They should be back later today."

"All right, good to know."

As Margaret began to observe the banners hanging from the balcony, she took the stairs near the doors and entered the S-Class Lounge. It didn't seem terribly different from the main floor, but it seemed less lived in. Here, there were bugs nested under the tables, the bookshelves containing ancient lore were caked with dust, and all but one of the bulletin boards was covered in spider webs. Margaret walked over to the lone exception. It seemed to be the only board with jobs not five years out of date. She wrote out the names of the benefactors, and pocketed her notebook, as she looked around the book shelves for any other leads...

**Barrier Particles and Collective Memory.**

**Thaddeus Belserion, X192**

**Abstract: While parallel worlds have not been established to exist _per se_, there is strong evidence of their existence based on the behavior of barrier particles. In particular, the seemingly spontaneous generation of particles that do not behave as those around them. Moreover, some stray particles appear to take on traits of mages who use them in their magic. The implication of this is that the influence of elemental forces on barrier particles is not immediately lost. This has led me to hypothesize that as the human body metabolizes barrier particles, and especially when mages release them as magic spells, some human memories are retained in the particles. This would mean that...**

Margaret cracked a smile. Crazy ancient ideas. Collective memory was an interesting thought, but it wasn't as though it existed outside of pulp stories. The past 700 years found no possibility that barrier particles carried memory, only that they were able to take on traits of the things around them-

"We're Ba-ack!" A voice shouted, as the doors of the guild hall flew open, and four human figures stood in the entryway.

Grace shouted from the floor. "Margaret! It's high time you met the others!"

Margaret descended the staircase and observed the four mages near her. She supposed they had to be Phoenix Gear's remaining mages. The four seemed to be a mismatched bunch, but then, Margaret had always thought of guild mages as having loose ties. The mages standing before here seemed to represent entirely different ideas. The closest to her was a few inches shorter than Margaret, and was a woman in her early twenties, with long violet hair and brown eyes. Her ensemble was somewhat simple, with black shorts and white tights and a gray hoodie that hid her figure. The only "showy" part of her was a black necklace with a white gem in its center. Margaret could tell that a good deal of magic emanated from it.

"We're sorry about the wait. We couldn't help it..." The woman sighed.

"It's okay, I'm Margaret Andersson," Margaret said, extending her hand in greeting.

"Elya Graylock," the woman responded.

"I assume you're the leader?"

"No, that would be me," a man only a couple of inches taller than Margaret spoke up. His eyes were also brown, but his hair was green and was spiked ever so slightly. He seemed to show the most negligible signs of aging, and thus she guess he was in his mid twenties. His clothes, a simple v-neck white shirt, a black leather jacket, and jeans alongside black boots, hid most of what Margaret saw as a few scars. Most of this body below the face seemed to be at least slightly scarred. "Silvius Capello, and if anything, I'll Master-ba-"

"Be nice to the new master," Said the elbow's owner. The man's attempt at a crude joke was cut off by a harsh elbow of the third figure. She towered well above the other three, and anyway stood a good five inches above Margaret at 6'3." She was also athletic, but it was not the lean kind of musculature. She was very much curved, and it seemed that her muscle mass was distributed across her body. More of a lifter than a runner. Her hair was a bright shade of orange, and reached her hips, which was doubly impressive considering her stature. She kept things a bit more formal than the other two, with a blue pleated dress with a laced overlay above the waste, alongside white sandals and silver stud earrings. "I'm Adenna, and yes, he's technically the team leader, but I outrank him as an S-Class. I usually watch the bar, but they needed an S-Class mage for this job," Adenna explained.

"A-are you the new master?" The fourth mage asked. He was nearest to Margaret's height, only a bit shorter, and seemed to be of slighter body. His appearance seemed almost contradictory. A frail appearance on a tanned boy with a scar on his left cheek, but what Margaret noticed first was the strange feathered wings on his back. He was dressed more like Elya than any of the others, and wore a simple t shirt and sweatpants, the former of which had holes cut to accomodate the wings. He seemed to be fighting back tears.

"Yes, I'm not quite sure of the situation surrounding my predacessor..." Margaret trailed off, as she noticed the boy's disposition skulk even further than before.

"Adenna, how about you show Margaret around the grounds. She's scarcely left the master's office since she came here," Said Grace, as she took the boy into her arms. "I'll see to Elsie's disposition."

"Sure thing," Adenna said, with a bright smile. "I guess you haven't seen too much of the guild grounds then."

* * *

"How far does this go?" Asked Margaret, as she stepped out of the guild hall to a clearing, where there seemed to be a ropes course and a magic power finder situated around a few stands. It seemed that this was meant to be a training ground, and unlike the S-Class lounge, it did see occasional use, but nowhere near the wear and tear of the main hall. Out from the courtyard was a vegetable garden, which was well-kept, and extended around 100 feet. Beyond that, the clearing gave way to a deep forest, that seemed to extend several miles, to a mountain marking the Ishvan Autonomous Region's start in the distance. To the immediate left and right of the hall lay a five story building seemingly made of apartments, as well as a small house to the other end.

"The guild owns everything up to the mountain, we don't really go much into the forest though. We haven't really found a use for it," Explained Adenna.

"I guess Master Marcus must have had a lot of money to throw around," Margaret remarked.

"To hear Grace tell it, he sank all of it in the guild, left in shame. No one's heard from him since," Adenna said, with a downbeat expression. "Supposedly, the forest was going to be used for some kind of expansion, but keeping up a guild is expensive."

"I was about to bring that up," Margaret said, with a concerned look.

"Master Ella never let me see the books. Is that what you were doing cooped up in the office the past three days?" Adenna asked.

"Yeah, it's a big problem. Marcus settled the hall, apartments, and the master's quarters, but we've got a lot of unnecessary expenses. There are several purchases of alcohol for the bar that haven't been sold, there seems to be a large drain on the power supply I haven't yet been able to identify, and we owe several damages for destroyed property, and one fairly substantial debt for something called 'damages from failure?'"

Adenna winced at the last point. "Let's look at the quarters," She said, seemingly unsettled by the discussion of accounts.

* * *

The master's quarters were smaller than expected, and seemed to be an A-Frame, with rooms dotting a shared wall with an extremely sheer roof. The sides of the house were perpendicular to the guild hall, and the front door thus jutted out from the nearer side of the roof-wall. It jutted out into a small entryway. On either end, there was a small porch.

"It's cozy," Margaret said. Seemingly very pleased.

"I like the cut of your gib," Adenna responded with a smile. "Ella was always saying it was too small."

"I don't think I've ever had that much space to myself," Margaret answered.

"I can relate. I grew up with thirteen siblings, big farm family," Explained Adenna. "Anyway, take a look inside."

Margaret obliged, opening the door and feeling a rush of energy, something she could only assume was a spell on the house priming itself to lock and unlock in response to her requests. She entered a simple foyer with two coat closets on either side, and a place for shoes. For how small the house itself was, there was an abundance of space in this area. Margaret could only assume this was to accomodate a large number of guests. The two removed their shoes and went further into the house. The floor plan seemed open, with a kitchen area to Margaret's right coming in, and a couch and myriad chairs centered around a table to her left. The lacrima lights were within lamps and on strands hung on a staircase on the other end of the room. Directly above the two, there was a balcony to which the staircase lead. There were two noticeable rooms across both walls, which Margaret assumed were a master and guest bedroom.

"Hey, it ain't much, but it's home, right?" Adenna chuckled.

"I love it," Margaret responded.

"Great, one more thing," Said Adenna. "You mentioned you wanted to bring costs down, as it happens I have a bit of training in business. Could I look at the books a bit?"

"Be my guest. I could use all of the help I could get."

* * *

"Shield Magic: Hero's Aegis!" A distinctly prim, feminine voice rang out, as the duo entered the guild hall. The scene before them was strange, but to Adenna didn't seem terribly foreign. The mages of Phoenix Gear were squared off against a trio of unfamiliar figures. Silvius seemed to be missing both arms, and yet there was no blood emanating from his shoulders, Grace had just activated a brilliant projection around her right wrist, a golden shield, partially translucent. Elya brandished a rapier that seemed to be protecting her from the concussive force of one of the interlopers. Esie was dive-bombing a man in black and red, who seemed to shrug it off. Meanwhile, Margaret noticed that despite being detached from his body, Silvius' arms were attempting to snare an unfamiliar young woman. The new figures all seemed to be mages, though if they were here to join the guild, she wasn't sure what they were doing fighting the current members. The fellow fighting Elya, who seemed to have the upper hand, was jarringly tall, even taller than Adenna. Dressed in black and purple. He had an open leather jacket with massive shoulder pads and a gray tank top ripped where the sleves may have once been. His jeans were ripped, and his right ear pierced. His black hair, choppy and in a short mullet, complemented his tanned skin well, but the thing Margaret noticed most was that his left eye was pure purple save for four white dots. He screamed outward distorting the air slightly, which Elya could defend against, but could not strike back or take him on directly.

The woman whom Silvius was trying to restrain was by contrast very much short and slight. She stood substantially under five feet tall, and was slight of build. She was dressed slightly more formally, wearing a white blouse and pleated skirt, with a pink ribbon at her collar. She seemed almost "warmer" than the first as well, with eyes and hair almost calming shades of brown. Around her was a dark aura, and a mace in her right hand. It wouldn't have been terribly magical at all if not for the fact that it seemed to be made of leg bones and a human skull. Margaret could sense that it was formed from barrier particles in turn. It seemed Silvius had the upper hand here, as she was unable to break the grasp that the latter's arms had on her. The final figure shrugged off Esie's attempts, and seemed only to avoid the attacks. Grace charged at him with her shield. He took the hit gracefully, and merely stood up, seemingly unfazed. He was dressed more formally than any of the others, with a black button down shirt, pants and shoes to match, along with a red coat hanging from his shoulders. Even though he wasn't fighting back, Margaret could tell that he was strong. He seemed to be able to sustain hits from even the guild's ace. A welcoming smile painted on his face, left clear thanks to his unruly black hair being tied back in a pony tail, told Margaret that this was hardly unfamiliar.

"Is this supposed to happen?" Margaret asked, noting that the tables' damage and topplings _were _consistent with such a skirmish.

"Yeah, any time someone joins the guild, they're supposed to spar whoever's available, just to get a ballpark of their strength. We don't have many traditions, but that's one of them," explained Adenna.

"Master Margaret!" The extant mages said, as they called off their respective magics, and the three new figures responded in kind.

"Well, it seems your strategy is working," Grace said, a warmth previously absent from her voice emerging.

"Right, so tell me about yourselves," Margaret cracked a smile.

The mulleted giant spoke up. "I'm Calleis Dysnomia, but you can call me Cal. I'm here to chew as and kick bubblegum, and I'm all out of both!" He declared with a laugh. Margaret rolled her eyes at the comment, but stifled a laugh.

"Zavid Strydr," the well-dressed man said, with a more reserved tone than Margaret expected, as he extended his hand.

"Hazel Prynce, the bone mage," the short woman declared herself.

"Bone magic?" Margaret asked, in a genuinely curious tone. Strangely, she had never encountered anything that quite functioned that way?

"It's a little complicated, it's sort of my own bones, sort of not. I'd need to draw a few things out..."

"Well why don't you? I'd like to see it," Margaret said, her intellectual curiousity very much piqued. "More importantly, I'd say it's high time we welcomed three new mages to Phoenix Gear!"

The surrounding mages erupted into laughter and applause, as Adenna began pouring drinks.

* * *

Later that night...

"So the good news is that these expenses are not atypical for a mage guild, the main problem is that we don't have enough revenue," Adenna said, looking over the ledgers Margaret had supplied.

"All right, that's the first bit of good news," Margaret sighed, blowing out pipe smoke in the same breath.

"Would you please smoke outside?" Adenna asked, a bit annoyed.

"Hey, it's my guild."

"Fair enough. I just hope Ptarmigan's applications get us enough mages to start bringing in the money."

"Well, I think I have an idea," Margaret said as she held up a stack of jobs, and separated several of them. "Why don't we just put the higher paying ones out?"

* * *

**A/N: Chapter 2 finally gets us to some fan-submitted OCs! As a courtesy, I'll start listing off OCs and their creators, including myself, at the end of the chapter where they made their debut. All OCs from chapter 1 were my own, so here's the rundown of Chapter 2: **

**Grace Montague created by The Impostor**

**Elya Graylock created by Origm2012**

**Silvius Capello created by MyDearWatson**

**Adenna Denn created by Outcast001**

**Esie created by Snow Bender**

**Calleis "Cal" Disnomia created by Pine Swiftwings**

**Hazel Prynce created by Post-Apokiasulyptic-Misha**

**Zavid Strydr created by Alucard Deathsinger**

**All right, and if you want to see your name on that list, shoot me a PM, and follow the rules currently on my profile. Check back there for updates on upcoming arcs, the OCs I might need for those arcs, and more details on what I'm currently looking for on OCs. Also, just as a further heads up, I'd like to encourage future OCs' histories not have them coming directly to the guild. More organic circumstances of joining to help vary the process up a bit, please. For everything else, check my profile, and as always, until next time!**


	3. Jobs Galore and the Magic of Bonding

**A/N: I'm** back** once more, we're seeing even more new characters this chapter. Still have some slots open though, so if you're interested, peep my profile for details! A little less to say in the note right now, so let's get into it, shall we?**

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore. 11 AM.**

The past two weeks had carried on uneventfully. Margaret's initial plan of only publishing the higher yield jobs seemed to be working, and the mages of Phoenix gear had spent the last two weeks doubling the weekly revenue of the guild. Today though, Margaret had something different in mind...

"This is odd..." Silvius muttered as he looked at the jobs that Ptarmigan had plastered to the board. There were much fewer than he had come to expect, and yet it seemed that they were higher yield. "Since when do we even get offered jobs like this?"

"Master Margaret said something about 'calling in a favor,'" Ptarmigan explained. "Something about some internal politics with the New Magic Council."

"Well, I am a bit behind on rent," Silvius sighed, as he looked through the bulletin board and eventually tore off one of the higher-yield jobs. The reward: 500,000 Jewels, minus damages, with half going to the mage or team that completed it, the other to the guild's coffer.

"You want a team? that's supposed to be a harder one," Ptarmigan mentioned, with a cursory glance. "It's almost S-Class."

"I think it's best I take this one alone. And besides, I think I could take Adenna, I may as well be S-Class."

"Hah, that's rich!" The bartender shouted out. "You wanna try?"

"Not when I've got a job this crazy today!" Silvius Shot back as he bundled up the paper and ran out the door.

With the commotion that caused, the remaining mages, save for Adenna and Grace, rushed to the lower floor. The collective began to systematically strip the bulletin board of the jobs. There weren't as many as there had been in previous weeks, but all of them paid at least twice as much as any job Phoenix Gear had receieved for as long as any of them could remember. In her office, a certain young guild master was speaking to an individual over hologram, and smirking all the while.

"Thanks for sending us all of those difficult jobs, we really need to get ourselves out of this debt..." Maragaret sighed, a little bit guilty, even as Isolde smiled.

"It's nothing, I'm one of the people making those decisions. I just changed Phoenix Gear's list to reflect the supposed strength of you new mages," Isolde explained. "You're just lucky that your guild was one of the ones I'm supposed to send requests out to."

"That's great. Here's hoping you get to go on to something more than this," Margaret muttered.

"Well yeah, I will say also though that I like the council member from Joya, he just came in after the last election, seems to really care about fixing what's broken, a wizard saint for previous work and everything. I think he goes by Rann, Rann the Hero is what they call him."

"Hey! Lazy bones!" Grace's unmistakable voice rang out, interrupting the conversation.

"Sorry Isolde, I'm going to have to call you back," Margaret said, as she logged off. "What's up?"

"What's made you so sure that this is going to help anyone?" Grace demanded.

"What do you mean?" Margaret shot back, genuinely confused about the animosity in her voice.

"We can't just throw our weight around. This is a guild meant to help a community, and you need to get your head out of your ass about it. You're not the next Mavis Vermillion!"

"And I'm sure our impending bankruptcy which is all that happens with the old ways, which you wanted to keep on going, would make us great in the eyes of the community." Margaret said, forcefully.

"And your plan is playing with lives." Grace said, indignantly, as she stormed out, joining Zavid as the two left, S-Class mission in hand.

Margaret was distraught as she made her way to the bar, noticing in turn that Silvius had left, and that Elya and Cal had picked up another job from the ground floor. Hazel and Esie had also grabbed one. It seemed like the energy she was seeking to bring to the table had permeated as she had hoped, and the mages of Phoenix Gear could and would rise and grow, Margaret felt a bit better, though still confused, as she rolled up to Adenna's domain, and began searching for a suitable drink.

"What will it be today Margaret?" Adenna asked with a smile. She noticed that over the past several weeks Margaret had been to the bar more and more. At first she thought that the young master was drinking the added stress away, but she had simultaneously noticed that Margaret seemed not to drink all that much; if anything, she seemed to be smoking her pipe more to deal with the stress. Instead, what always seemed to happen was that Margaret was there to simply _t__alk. _Adenna didn't mind, all this meant was that she would be getting a closer view of the new master.

"Give me something light, I need to keep my mind sharper," Margaret decided, as she scanned the bottles behind Adenna, and the bartender sprang into action, before settling on a pear cider. Meanwhile, Margaret took a cocktail napkin and began furiously scribbling, first sketching out a circle and drawing strange symbols, seemingly from memory.

"Whatcha working on there?" Asked Adenna, noticing the slightly older woman's furious work.

"I'm attempting to create a new spell's formula. You obviously notice that kooky circle that shows up whenever you cast a spell,"

"Right," Adenna affirmed.

"Well the thing is, each representation of the spell must first be discovered, and the circle that represents it must be physically formed. Once the spell has been created, you can create a sort of reflexive way to conjure it up, that's how guild mages usually operate, but you need to understand the how of how it fits together first. The good news is that most of the makeup is consistent within magic styles, it's usually only three or four runes that are different in the same magic style. That's what I'm trying to sketch up now. I think I've found the ideal runes, I just need to model it to scale," Margaret explained.

"Well what do you need for that?"

"I need something called barrier salt, which in larger cities you can usually find at a magical supply store, I'll also need butcher paper to arrange the salt on, and even though it's not necessary, I like to mix the salt with a bit of moon drip. It dampens the magical effect, makes it safer. If something goes wrong, it won't make the guild hall explode, see?"

"Fair enough," Adenna responded, stifling a bit of a laugh.

"Actually, can you help me look for barrier salt in the back? No reason to spend money if it's already there..."

* * *

**Estrecho Train Station, 11:30 AM.**

"I've been meaning to see how an S-Class mission plays out, and you seem a bit more reliable than Adenna," Zavid explained, to the somewhat skeptical old woman with whom he had just left the building.

"Well, you make a compelling case," Grace sighed, as the two walked towards the train station.

"It's not so much a matter of duty, more of practicality. To be quite honest, I'd have preferred to take this job alone," Zavid explained, as he shifted slightly uncomfortably.

"Well you might talk to Margaret about that, we did have an S-Class promotion exam long ago, but it hasn't been held in years. In Ella's time, she simply named stronger mages S-Class. I was a holdover from before her time, and so was named guild ace. Ultimately though, I must admit I don't hold a candle to other aces, say Natsu Dragneel or Lyon Vastia..."

"I will once we come back. What is it we're supposed to resolve here?"

"It's fairly complicated. As it turns out, there's some kind of strange town in the mountains where time is inconsistent," Grace began.

"Inconsistent?"

"Supposedly, one can be sent through different ages, can be spit out in different years, even thousands of years past or future, and you can even remain frozen in time if you aren't careful. Fortunately, the rules are fairly easily to understand, which is why it isn't ranked SS Class. Things should go smoothly if you don't do anything stupid."

"Understood," Zavid answered, his characteristic indifference unwavering.

At the platform, the duo noticed Silvius a few platforms over, standing near a man a few inches taller than their guild mate. The two were not speaking, but it was clear that this had something to do with his mission.

"I wonder what he's up to," Zavid muttered.

"I gave the jobs a once over, and I think it's something that he's needed to do for some time," Grace said, as the two of them boarded a train bound for Crocus, to reach their ultimate destination at a hub station.

* * *

**Bosco Line, Somewhere in Fiore, 12 Noon.**

"And you're sure that this guy, Damon Spencer, on this train?" Silvius asked the benefactor, a steely resolve plain to see in his eyes as he held up a photograph of a man with a long black hair, and an oddly demonic smile. Slaver. Silvius knew the type all too well.

"Positive," said the man before him. He was an odd fellow, dressed in a suit and a cowboy hat, with a bushy mustache. Silvius noted that if anything, his appearance suggested he was the conductor of a train similar to this one, rather than a member of an international anti-slavery watchdog, and yet here he was, in all of his ridiculous glory.

"Now let's say these kidnappers throw you into their moon drip handcuffs. At that point you'll have no magical strength, how're you gonna handle that?"

Silvius balefully detached his hand. "I think I can handle that," he muttered, as he got up to leave the private compartment.

"Remember, be street smart!" The man called as he closed the door. Silvius cringed. He was going to blow their cover at that rate. The disassembling mage took a deep breath, and tried to maintain his resolve as he jumped cars, making his way methodically towards the dining car. He reached it in minutes, and stood before a respectable looking car, covered in gilded friezes, with a bar to his right, and booths to his left. At the bar was a pink-haired woman he did not know, and at the booth nearest the bar was a black haired man in his forties, in a strange silver cloak, and seemed to be musing over a notebook. Silvius spit on the ground, and formed a smirk. Despite the circumstances, Silvius seemed to be derriving a bit of pleasure from the proceedings.

"Hello there!" The bartender said, seemingly excited to be serving clients other than the two currently there. "What can I get for you?"

"I'll just take a cola. I need to stay sharp, I've got some business to attend to once we're in Bosco," Silvius explained.

"Fair enough sir," The man said, as he poured a soda and slid it over to Silvius, who grabbed it with his currently attached hand, sipped it once, and set it on the table. He then took the opportunity to zero in on the man sitting at the booth: Damon Spencer.

"Sir, may I discuss some... sensitive business?" Silvius asked, as he stood and meandered towards the booth.

"Certainly, step into my office," the older man said as Silvius did just that, sure to hide the missing hand on his right arm behind his back.

"All right, now I understand you're selling some rather unique bits of livestock," Silvius said, unable to fight back his smirk. The plan was coming together.

Damon saw his smirk, and moreover observed the powerful magic energy emanating from his client. There was no slave in his possession that could profit him as much as selling such a strong mage to Bosco's elite. As far as he could tell, this specimen was some form of guild mage playing hero. A perfect target to catch in his own web. He glanced briefly at the woman seated at the bar, who dropped a bead into Silvius' drink. "Well sir, I think it's best that any transactions be kept at bay until we reach Bosco, but we can negotiate some of the details now.

"Sounds excellent, I'll just grab my drink," Silvius said, ignorant of the trap being laid for him.

"Very well."

Silvius took another substantial sip, and as he turned around, ready to fake out his quarry with an attack, fell to the floor.

* * *

**IAR Borderlands, 12:15 PM**

"Wait, who is the target here exactly?" Esie asked, as he read the mission description for the fifth time.

"Supposedly, we're after a dark mage posing as a courier. She's hired an independent mage as a body guard, and it's our job to stop them before they reach the Ishvan Autonomous Region. This road is just the most likely," Hazel explained. "It isn't clear how much the body guard knows, so whether or not we bring them in too all depends."

"Okay, but what if they both attack us, shouldn't we have backup?" Esie asked, shaking a bit.

"This was the most we could put together today, blame Margaret's whole mission selection if you want to blame anyone," Hazel responded, more interested in finishing the job than anything else.

"Maybe I will," Esie sighed. "Maybe I will..."

* * *

**Estrecho, 1 PM.**

"I need about six feet of that paper," Margaret said, as she pointed to the roll of white paper on the butcher's wall.

"That will be..." The young man began.

Adenna winked in his direction, and the young man blushed, clearly remembering another incident.

"Free..." He sighed, as he cut six feet off, as requested, handing it to Margaret.

"You know that guy?" Margaret asked, curious about Adenna's seeming acumen as a lover. It wasn't necessarily surprising, it was just that Margaret was only just getting to know Adenna, and so most, if not all things, came as a surprise.

"He and I have been lovers here and there," Adenna muttered, figuring that Margaret wouldn't be interested in the entire story as the two walked out onto the cobbled street of Estrecho's former shopping district. Margaret couldn't help but notice the general failing state of the buildings around them. As she had seen when coming into the town, the shops were largely boarded up, restaurants, hotels, and apartment buildings seemed to be left fallow, and the once fertile grounds of business were barren as the soil of the desert just south of them.

"Do you know if there was ever a time that Estrecho was doing better?" Margaret asked, gazing at the ruined street ahead of them.

"I've only lived here a year, so I couldn't tell you, but I do know Master Marcus founded this guild in hopes that it would make his home town more vibrant. This might be a carryover from the guild's early days.

"So it never delivered on the promise then?" Margaret asked.

"More or less," Adenna agreed.

The two broke their conversation as they entered the magic store. It was a bit more vibrant than the butcher's shop, as magic items seemed to be in higher demand. A shorter blonde woman was the cashier, and the items seemed to line the wiry shelves with no rhyme or reason. Maybe a bit obstructive, but Margaret couldn't exactly choose a venue. "Adenna, can you-" Margaret was cut off by her companion sweet-talking the cashier.

"So are we on for tomorrow night?" She asked the cashier, who blushed.

"O-of course!" the cashier said, with a glisten in her eyes. Meanwhile, Margaret scanned the shelves for moon drip, found a jar, and walked to the counter.

"Excuse me," Margaret said, sincerely.

"Yes ma'm?" The cashier responded in kind.

"Does this store carry barrier salt? I need it for a bit of a personal project," the guild master explained, as she also placed the jar of moon drip on the table and side eyed Adenna, who gave a confused look in kind.

"Well, we may it's not an especially popular item, but we do have a few occasional buyers. We can stock it without much trouble, because it never goes bad," the cashier explained, as she went back into what must have been a stock room.

"Adenna," Margaret began, when the door closed.

"What's up?" The S-Class mage asked.

"Why are you cheating on the butcher?" She demanded, with a disapproving look.

Adenna looked confused for half a second, before a slight smile of realization crept onto her face. "Oh, it's not cheating, I'm polyamorous," she explained.

"Polyamorous?"

"Sarai, she's the cashier, and Victor, the butcher, both know that I'm dating the other, and they're okay with it, the way I operate is that I just find people I like, and if they like me, I'll date them. It doesn't really matter to me how many I have at once, and if they overlap, and the people I overlap with are okay with it, then so be it," Adenna explained.

"Oh, I don't think I've ever encountered that..." Margaret said, slightly confused.

"It's all right, you were probably taught that you needed to stay with one person, and so you thought I was breaking an unspoken rule. I never keep my partners in the dark, so it works," Adenna explained further.

"That makes sense," Margaret said. She hadn't quite processed it, but she supposed Adenna wasn't really hurting anyone with this. As such, she decided to change the subject "Hey Adenna?"

"Yes?"

"I've just been thinking, and I realize Grace doesn't seem to like me much, and I'm just wondering if you might know why..." She sighed.

"Well I think it should be obvious. She believes you're putting a lot of undue danger and stress on the guild," Adenna said, matter of factly.

"I mean, I gathered that part, but how is a guild supposed to work without the danger?" Margaret demanded.

"Think a little more about Grace," Adenna led the master on.

"Well she's been here since the guild's founding, she knows all the mages that would have came and went, judging by the small membership numbers we've had in the past..."

"Right, and she was very close with Ella," Adenna finished.

"How does that tie in?" asked a confused Margaret.

"I don't think we've ever told you how Ella died," Said Adenna.

"How did it happen?"

"Well, towards the end of her time here, she came up with a similar strategy, and she promised some information to some kind of NGO. I'm not sure of the details, but the mission went sour somehow. The benefactor was so angry that they walked right into the guild hall, killed Ella where she stood, and left. That was around four months ago," exposited Adenna.

"I-I had no idea..." Margaret sighed. She supposed that Ella wasn't that different from her, maybe that was what this was about. "So does she see much of Ella in me?"

"I doubt it, Ella actually thought things through, Adenna said in a mocking tone, with a wink.

Margaret stuck out her tongue. "Well I doubt Ella could manage this!" She declared, catching on as the two entered the guild hall and Margaret cleared away several chairs, and then rolled out the butcher paper, weighing it down with the nearest chairs available.

* * *

**Oasis Roadside Buffet, south of Estrecho, 2 PM.**

"We can't afford to always stop at restaurants like this," Cal sighed, as he followed Elya into the establishment.

"I'm sorry," the woman muttered. "I just think we need to be hydrated and full if we're going into the desert..." argumentation was wholly absent from her voice, she was clearly worried and ashamed, and genuinely meant no offense.

Cal's expression brightened. "Hey, on the other hand, what's to say the job won't cover it?" He said with a smile. "'sides, weird food like this is the spice of life!"

The restaurant's dining room was a bit dank, and consisted of ancient carpet, faux-leather booths with a few tables, and lighting only from neon signs interspersed with the light exposing the buffet itself. It wasn't the most appealing setup, but it was what could be accrued at this time. There were a few people seated at a booth across the room, a couple with two children.

"All right, so we kill this giant lizard and we get out of here?" Asked Cal.

"Something like that, but I've also heard rumors about a map being stolen by a bandit family in this area, I think the map might be something I need," Elya explained.

At this, it seemed that the family there grew a bit nervous, and immediately walked out. "You think they're bandits?" Cal asked.

"No doubt," agreed Elya. "Tell you what, I'll tail them and catch up to you with that sand lizard business."

"Sounds good," Cal answered, as the two bolted out the doors, one running towards the family, the other towards the desert.

* * *

Elya followed in the shadows, something that turned out to be easier than expected for her. As far as she could tell, the family were moving away from the desert, into the forest. That only made it easier. Thankfully, their hideout was a mere few yards into the forest, and so the chase ended with Elya listening intently outside of a small wooden hut.

"I think a few mages are on to us," one of the voices said.

"Does this mean we need to lay low for a while?" Asked a different masculine voice.

"How can we? That kid we took in all those years ago can barely go a day without clearing out the market's stock," a more feminine voice sighed.

"Don't talk about him like that, he's one of us, keeps the people busy, entertains," said the first voice.

"Either way, we could call someone from The Hand in, especially if we're going to have a legal guild on our hands; this is techinically part of _their _operations, after all," the feminine voice noted.

"Very well..." The first voice sighed. "Now about this map."

Elya gasped.

"Hey, who's there?" Demanded the second voice as the three exited the cabin, Elya in full view.

* * *

"Oh shit oh shit oh shit!" A voice rang out as its owner crawled out of the mirage-tinged distance. It was a boy, probably in his mid teens by Cal's observation. He was short, at only three inches above five feet, and had blonde hair. His frame was slim, and was partially exposed by his bandaged chest, with an open yellow vest over it. His shorts also puffed out. Despite the many dangers that may lurk under the sand, the boy was barefoot, but the two things that stood out most were his monkey tail and heterochromatic eyes, one green, one red.

"What's up, mate?" Cal said, more confused than anything else. The youth stopped as he encountered Cal.

"Well I decided to fight a big monster, and it turns out it's kind of solar powered," he said, as he tried to run off, but Cal grabbed his vest and pulled him back in.

"What was this thing? Uh..." Cal realized he didn't know the youth's name.

"Lunick, and I guess it was kind of like a lizard..." He managed.

As Lunick spoke, the beast emerged. As it happened, it was Cal's mark.

"All right kid, here's what's going to happen, because my compatriot isn't back yet, we're going to fight this thing together."

* * *

**Phoenix Gear Hall, 2:30 PM**

"All right, it's done!" Margaret announced as she finished painting the butcher paper with the last of the magenta paste made from the salt and moon drip. The magic circle before the two mages was more complicated than any Adenna had seen, and the runes themselves were not any the tall redhead recognized.

"I don't think I've ever seen those runes," Adenna noted, a bit confused by their presence.

"That's because they represent the shape another universe's particles take," Margaret explained, as she placed her hand on two points of the circle.

"So your magic comes from another universe?" Adenna asked, intrigued.

"Yep, planar magic takes a variety of forms, but basically it involves forcing parallel particles from other plains into this one, through small amounts found in the air. Different plains have different properties.

"I don't know too much about Thaumaturgical Science, I'll admit, I studied business, magic is more of a hobby," Adenna conceded.

"I could show you a bit, like I'm doing right now," Margaret said, not fully sure of why she seemed so friendly now of all times. As she spoke, the circle started glowing and turned dark blue, as it rose above the paper and coalesseced into a dark blue mirrored surface. "Go ahead, hit it with a spell," She said.

Adenna complied. "Rose Thorn Rush!" She shouted, as a sharp vine protruded from her hand, firing at high speed towards the surface. It hit home, and seemed to sink into it, though the surface itself kept its tension. A second later, a thorn bush sprang from it, everything on it dark blue.

"I made this to temporarily copy a spell that it gets hit with," explained Margaret. "It runs out after one use, and this version is weaker, so it won't hurt anything," as if on cue, the bust crumbled to ash. "And by the way, thanks for putting up with me all day," Margaret finished, as she extended her hand.

"It was my pleasure," Adenna responded, and in a weird way it was. It was like everything went right with this new master around. She just had to wait and see what else this crazy woman would cook up, she owed it to herself at this point.

"I just want to thank you. I think I'll cook dinner tonight," the guild master declared, with an almost devilish look.

In some versions of this scenario, Adenna would have backed away, maybe a bit fearful, but here, she took it in stride, waiting to see what strange thing Margaret was going to do next.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for all the cliffhangers. Originally, Chapter 3 was going to be about twice as long and resolve all but one of the jobs, but because I'm busy all the rest of this week, and wanted to get something out before then, I ended up splitting what was originally going to be Chapter 3 into Chapters 3 and 4. I promise that many more OCs will get introduced then, plus a few more surprises. And if you want to see your OC be among Phoenix Gear, don't forget to check my profile for updates on availability and the bio. Until next time!**

**Lunick created by MaMcMu**


	4. Strange Magic and Stranger Storms

**A/N: And we're back. I'd like to thank the outpouring of support for the story. I'm really feeling all of the OCs I got after last chapter, and I'm really excited to fill out the rest of the roster. 11 to go! Without further ado, let's get to chapter 4!**

* * *

**8 June X820, Bosco Line, Somewhere in Fiore, 3 PM.**

Silvius strained his eyes as the world came back into focus. He found himself shackled next to an older man, in a train car he didn't recognize. Damn. Drink must have been drugged. His right hand was still detached, and he could feel it, nestled in a booth in the dining car. Exactly where he'd left it. His feet were restrained, no doubt with moon drip. "Well, I guess it's lucky I thought ahead..." he muttered, as he felt around with his detached hand.

"Do you hear that?" the pink haired woman asked, as Silvius' hand sprang to life.

"Don't worry, Zoe, I'm sure that it's merely a rat," Damon laughed, not entirely convinced there was a sound at all.

Silvius felt around, realizing that his hand had come close to the bar itself. Doing his best to remember where the people were located in that car, he took a gamble and felt air displaced by a body. He quietly scaled his hand up the stool next to him. He had one shot at this. Smirking at how this whole thing looked, he jumped towards the presence he felt, and slapped her skirt upward, exposing what felt like a key ring, and scurrying his hand away.

"Shit, there's a random... Hand!?" Zoe shouted, directing Damon's attention towards the hand that had just left through the ajar door to the car's rear.

"It seems that hero boy found a way out. Follow that hand," Damon ordered, as he ascended from his seat, and activated his magic.

Silvius wasted no time in freeing himself as his right hand re-atached to his body, and sprang the lock after trying two keys. "Get everyone else out," he ordered the old man next to him, as he ran out of the car, into a largely empty one. Damn, _of course _there would be some space between the stockade and the dining car. His disappointment was soon replaced with disgust as the duo of slavers came to the other side of the door.

"Ah, so I see your little scheme worked, unfortunate," Damon sighed, as he waved his hand, a blue glob shooting out, and hitting the point under which Silvius was standing. A portal seemed to open up at the mage's feet, and another at the roof. Silvius was of course immediately thrown through the portal and landed flat on his face, as he fell suddenly from the roof.

"What the fuck?" Silvius said, as Zoe flew towards him a glowing blue knife outstretched.

"Well, it seems like you're now worth more to us dead..." She sighed as she came in with her knife. Silvius instinctively detached his torso the stabbing motion was met with nothing but air, and yet the knife itself caused a bit of strain, as it seemed to suck magic towards itself.

Panicking, Silvius re-assembled his body, and gasped. "W-what kind of knife is that?"

"It's called a sponge knife," Zoe explained, as she brandished it again. "It sucks up magic anywhere I stick it."

Silvius sighed. "Of course it does," He muttered as Zoe rushed back towards the door, leaving him bewildered.

Damon opened up another portal, in Zoe's path, as she entered the portal, and flying out of the car's other end. Silvius turned around, detached his hands, and braced for impact.

"Let's see you live through this!" She shouted, as Silvius' hands flew outward, fists clenched, and hit the young woman in the face and stomach. It didn't stop her, but her angle changed, the knife stabbed his arm. The gash was bad, but he could fight it now. Zoe quickly fell back, as Damon opened up the portal again.

The mage looked over to the other side of the car. Sure enough, another portal had opened up. "Gotcha," Silvius thought, as he kicked out wildly, and detached his foot, flying into the portal at high velocity. Before Damon could react, a certain foot beaned him in the back of the head, and collapsed, causing Zoe to trip over his body.

Damon awoke in a daze. "How did you break our combination?" He demanded.

"Simple. I noticed that your magic was fairly rudimentary, you still needed to open up two portals in line with each other, all it took was getting you to put yourself in between two, after that, it was just a matter of being fast enough," Silvius laughed. "Honestly, you're kind of an idiot, have you even fought a real guild mage before?"

The two of them looked away, embarrassed.

* * *

"Well, these two goofs though they could get away with nicking human beings!" The benefactor said to the border agent with a laugh.

"Well I can see the violation here, slave trading is only legal within Bosco..." the agent agreed. "Foreign slaves do fetch a pretty penny though, I'm not surprised that people try, isn't the first time I've seen it..."

"Well, another day has been saved!" The benefactor declared with a laugh, as he motioned to Silvius. "Now you, young man, are a fine fellow, congratulations."

"Thank you, uh..."

"Barrelbinder, CC Barrelbinder," the man said, as he extended a bag full of Jewels to the guild mage.

"Thanks, CC," Silvius sighed, still a bit unnerved by just how strange the man was.

"Hey, don't spend all of that in one place, even at your local haberdashery!" CC laughed. "And remember, stay street smart!"

Silvius stifled a laugh as he turned around, to find a train bound once again for Estrecho.

* * *

**Great Fiore Desert, 2:30 PM.**

"How do you know this thing is solar powered?" Cal asked, as the beast began to emerge from the mirage. It was a spiny creature, with an armored head, spine ridges protruding from its back, and yellow scales.

"I'm a solar mage," Lunick panted, hiding behind the tall man. "I hit him, and he just got faster and stronger.

"Great..." Cal sighed. Was this kid going to be any help at all? It wasn't like he had the time to judge though, there was a certain charging wild beast at his doorstep, so to speak. As such, he activated a magic circle and took on a fighting stance. "Kid, keep him distracted, I'll get him out cold," the singing mage promised, as he requipped an electric guitar, strummed a few chords, and opened his mouth, wide. "Song of suffering!"

At that moment, Lunick burst out from behind Cal, a bright aura seeming to form around him as he stepped out of a shadow and into the sun. He raced past the beast, and heard Cal's song begin...

_Like a dagger drawn across my chest,_  
_Shoots a bullet in Russian roulette,_  
_You said you'd never turn your back on me,_  
_Rescue me, rescue me,_  
_Would you stand by me and bury me?_  
_Bury me,_

Lunick picked up the largest cactus he saw, the sun giving him strength as well, and threw it at the beast. The green missile hit home... And was promptly crushed by the beast's armor. Got its attention though

Cal briefly paused his song. "Oi, keep him in my line of sight, won't work otherwise!" He shouted out, as the beast began to chase Lunick Cheaper into the desert.

"Have it your way," Lunick agreed, as he seemed to disappear, and suddenly reappear behind the beast. "Hey! Ugly!"

The beast chased after 'Lunick' again, and seemed to crush him underfoot, but just as the foot came down, the illusion disappeared, and Lunick distorted back into focus.

_Why don't we end this lie,_  
_I can't pretend this time,_  
_I need a friend to find my broken mind,_  
_Before it falls to pieces!_

"Pretty cool, huh?" Lunick laughed, as he gave Cal a "thumbs up," gesture.

"Head in the game kid," Cal demanded, as he pointed to the beast turning around once again.

_Every time you try to leave me blind,_  
_You'll never close my eyes,_  
_You'll never close my eyes and watch me die!_

"Luminous Spark!" Lunick Declared, as he fired a flashbang from his hand.. the beast seemed to be getting stronger, but was blinded in the same exchange. Exactly what Lunick was after. He took advantage of the split second, and uppercut the beast's underbelly. The lizard staggered, and stayed in place, with Lunick out of its line of sight, began to rely more on its other senses.

_And when she spins the bottle round and round,_  
_Every time it leaves me kept and bound,_  
_You said you'd never turn your back on me,_  
_Rescue me, rescue me,_  
_Would you stand by me and bury me?_  
_Bury me,_  
_Why don't we end this lie,_  
_I can't pretend this time,_  
_I need a friend to find my broken mind,_  
_Before it falls to pieces!_

At this point, the beast seemed to be more energetic. Despite Lunick's efforts, it was a losing battle. The light gave it all the power it needed, and it seemed to only be a matter of time before the mage was crushed.

_End this lie I cant pretend,_  
_This time I need a friend to find my broken mind,_  
_Before it falls to pieces,_  
_Every time you try to leave me blind,_  
_You'll never close my eyes,_  
_You'll never close my eyes and watch me die!_

_Misery won't get the best of me,_  
_Cause now I'm calling, yes I'm calling on your bluff!_

_Misery won't get the best of me,_  
_Cause now I'm calling, yes I'm calling on your bluff!_

_Don't tell your lies I've had enough!_

_Why don't we end this lie,_  
_I can't pretend this time,_  
_I need a friend to find my broken mind,_  
_Before it falls to pieces,_  
_Every time you try to leave me blind,_  
_You'll never close my eyes,_  
_You'll never close my eyes and watch me die,_

_End this lie I cant pretend,_  
_This time I need a friend to find my broken mind,_  
_Before it falls to pieces!_

_Every time you try to leave me blind,_  
_You'll never close my eyes,_  
_You'll never close my eyes and watch me die!_

Cal, seeing this, rushed to finish the song, as Lunick dodged the hulking beast. Seemingly on cue, the sand lizard collapsed, writing in pain. "Now to end this," Cal muttered, as Lunick finally stopped, panting. The boy collapsed on the sand.

"You all right kid?" Cal asked, seeing the limber youth suddenly sprawled on the ground.

"Yeah, just lazy..." Lunick laughed. "You killed that thing, right?"

"Not quite, just put it in pain. I'm lucky it landed on its stomach," Cal sighed, as he started tuning his guitar again, playing a different set of chords. "Summoner's Blade, Harmony," He muttered, before breaking into song once more.

_Howling in mist beyond awake_  
_Cast out the bliss over my grave_  
_Fountain of youth you'll never taste_  
_Wolf claw a bitch criminal grace_

_Higher in order to claim our prize_  
_Under the ether we lived fought and died_  
_Lightning below the ground patterns of all trinities_  
_You'll remember your God's true name_

_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Covering the blackness there with white_  
_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Coloring the blackness where we lie_

_Discordant myths you call your own_  
_Commanding a view of Heaven's new throne_  
_Prowling the dark plagues of desire_  
_Prey on the weak wound driven choir_

_Flowers of evil your bread cross and wine_  
_Plunder the ether to bring forth divine_  
_Lightning above the ground talons of cold misery_  
_You'll remember your God's true name_

_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Covering the blackness there with white_  
_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Coloring the blackness where we lie_

_Amen_  
_Demonize_  
_Green words_  
_Tranquilize_  
_Gravity_  
_Or perfumed skies_

_Wondering who mates above_  
_Hollow eyes condemned by love_  
_It's no surprise when I appear_  
_Bill in hand profane austere_

_Lightning above the ground saddest of all trinities_  
_You'll remember your God's true name_

_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Covering the blackness there with white_  
_Lucifer's Hammer lights up the dark_  
_Coloring the blackness where we lie._

After completing the song, the guitar itself seemed to develop a shell around itself, and formed into a sword. Cal casually strolled over to the lizard and stabbed at its heart. The beast fell, dead.

"Why were _you _trying to fight that thing, kid?" Cal asked, genuinely confused as to what he could benefit from this affair.

"Well I heard that species' eggs were really tasty, and I wanted to see for myself..." began Lunick.

"Say no more! That's pretty far out there," Cal laughed.

Lunick stood up. "Well you're pretty cool too, you in a guild?"

"Yep, just joined Phoenix Gear a few weeks ago, he said, pointing to the symbol, a phoenix's head with half a gear protruding from it, on his tank top.

"Cool. You taking new recruits?" The youth asked.

"Yeah, our new guild master put out an open request for new members, you looking for something different?"

"Well I guess so, I've kind of been in treasure hunting for a while, and I'm interesting in changing careers..." Lunick said, his gaze shifting around.

"Seems as good a reason as any!" Cal declared, seeming to miss the unease.

"Great, I'll need to say a few goodbyes first though..." Cal muttered, seeing his chance, but with a twinge of regret.

"It seems like you're hesitant," Cal said.

"Well they took me in, and they taught me a few tricks. I ought to at least say thank you," Lunick said, trying to play things cool.

* * *

"Who are you?" The leader asked Elya, as she rose from her squat.

"No one..." Elya muttered, embarrassed above anything else.

"I doubt that. What is your purpose in being here?"

"Weeeeeeelll... I kind of need a map I thought you might have and-"

"Sorry," the leader said as he and his compatriots drew swords, "we have our own use for it."

Elya's resolve only increased with that statement, and the jewel on her necklace began to glow. It quickly stopped, and a strange spider appeared on her shoulder. It was small, at only one inch, but she seemed confident. "Not my first choice, but Junn, go," she commanded, as the spider shrank to a quarter inch and scurried off away from both Elya and the bandits, who quickly converged on their target.

Elya went low, ducking under their swords, and smiling slightly as a small spider began navigating the web of legs around her and her spell. Junn jumped from assailant to assailant, and Elya, with a final jump back, took time to admire her own handiwork.

"What the- it hurts!" One of them shouted, clutching his leg.

"The hell did you do to us?" Another demanded, the pain turning to numbness.

"Well, let's just say I gave you a bit of a family heirloom," Elya muttered, as she began walking towards the desert, only to find her field of vision, along with everything behind her replaced by pure white, also catching a certain musician and a certain light mage.

"What's this about then?" Cal muttered, as the haze covered them as soon as the forest began.

"I recognize it. One of my mentors uses this type of magic, I think he calls it smokescreen magic," Lunick explained.

One of the bandits hobbled to his feet, and ran at Elya, who managed to hear his footsteps, and sidestep him. Another rose, this time Elya wasn't so lucky. The blade grazed her face.

"I have her!" the second assailiant asked, as Elya saw a red magic circle with a downward facing triangle, with a line through it in the center.

All of the sudden, the other bandits managed to converge on Elya's position, and in the same moment, Lunick and Cal came upon thier backs.

"Hey guys! I'm back! No eggs, but I met a friend!" Lunick shouted out

"Can you come back? We're in the middle of something..." One of the bandits sighed.

Elya was able to make out Cal's outline, and in the brief moment of distraction, she ran behind the two mages.

"Hey! Get back here!" The lead bandit demanded, as he ran up to the trio, but hobbled in the past few steps and fell on his face. In the same moment, he called off his spell, exposing the forest around them.

"What's this about?" Cal demanded.

"We're ah- treasure hunters, that woman just attacked us and-"

"You're thieves, and I just happened to be stealing back a valuable map." Elya shot back.

"Lunick, you weren't meant to see this..." The leader sighed.

"I knew," he muttered. It wasn't like all the secrecy didn't make it obvious, plus, if we were part of a legal guild, why would we keep our presence so secret, and why wouldn't we display our symbol proudly?" He muttered, as he took out a handkerchief from his vest pocket. On it was a symbol of a hand with an eye on its palm.

The bandits sighed, all toppled on the floor. "We didn't want you involved in this, but it was inevitable, it was our living,"

Lunick smiled. "I'm not mad. How could I be. You did this for me, now, I'll help you get out of it. Make some money, and we'll be back," he agreed.

"Thank you. We're very proud of you," the leader sighed, as Elya ran into the house and recovered the map.

"Some extra money," she explained, as the three made their way through the forest, back to Estrecho.

* * *

**IAR Borderlands, 4PM.**

"It's been three hours..." Esie moaned, as he stretched his wings from the rocky perch that he and Hazel had found for surveilance.

"Get down!" Hazel demanded, as she pulled her younger compatriot down into the saftey of the rock formation.

"HEY!" Esie shouted.

"What is your problem?" Hazel demanded, pivoting and positioning herself above Esie, the latter, cowering in fear.

"We've been waiting here all day..." Esie sobbed.

Hazel sighed, she supposed that Phoenix Gear had to have been a bit desperate to have someone like _him_ on. Perhaps this was the time to learn more...

"So, what was Ella like?" Hazel asked, trying to get a feel for the entire situation.

"She was the best. She took me in... I loved her." Esie said, as he punched the dirt below them.

"And that's why you're suspicious of Margaret?"

"Well, I guess so..." He sighed.

Hazel sort of assumed that this was a bit higher minded. It seemed instead that, in spite of everything else, he was still mourning a mother figure. She couldn't exactly fault him for it, and yet, moving forward in spite of it was all that she could encourage, especially as she saw a duo of individuals matching the job's description walking a mere fifty feet from their position.

"It's go time!" Hazel shouted, as she slid down the hillside and squared off against the duo. Esie looked up, paralyzed, and thinking about the past once again.

* * *

**Flashback: 3 Years ago.**

The young boy awoke with a jolt. Around him were a few figures, an old woman in a nice coat, a younger guy with scars, and a casually dressed woman. Standing behind them was a middle-aged woman with a poncho, a white hat, and a pair of white denim jeans.

"AH! Get me out of here!" Esie shouted, as his wings began beating, faster than usual, and he attempted to take off. He jumped off the table, which had been repurposed as a makeshift bed, and landed somewhat hard on his foot. "AHHHHHHHH!" He screamed, even louder than before.

"Ink make brace..." the middle-aged woman sighed, as she wove a cast out of ink, seemingly directly on Esie's foot. This seemed to calm the boy down.

"Who are you people?" Esie asked, as he he looked around the guild hall for the first time.

"We're Phoenix Gear, a mage guild," Ella explained with a warm smile. "From what we can tell, you seem to need a new place to stay."

"Yeah, more or less," Esie sighed, as he struggled to get up from the floor.

"How about this, we'll take you in until you're feeling better, and from there it's up to you," Ella said, as she picked him up and carried him to a side room, possibly an infirmary.

"All right, fine."

* * *

**Back in the present...**

"Head in the game dude!" Hazel shouted, as she summoned her mace, and charged at the two travelers. Esie could see that both were young women in their late teens. One had platinum blonde hair in a pony tail, and steel blue eyes. She was ready for battle, dressed in leather armor over a cream tunic and light brown pants. Her appearance seemed lively, almost as though she was more prepared to enjoy this affair, regardless of the risk involved. The other was much less assuming, dressed in a purple shirt and jeans, with a thick nest of black hair, long and unkempt. She was shorter than her baleful companion, who stood around as tall as Esie, but her skin was just as pale. Hazel had begun to confront them, and Esie entered a slow descent, to better observe the proceedings.

"I keep telling you! She's supposed to be carrying a message between guilds in the New Balam Alliance," Hazel yelled, the other woman seemingly standoffish about the prospect.

"Rosalie couldn't be, she's just trying to get to her new job in the Autonomous region!" the other figure protested, edging closer to Hazel and using her height to her advantage.

At this point, Rosalie was looking ahead, more flabbergasted than afraid.

"What's this then?" Hazel demanded, as she examined the mission. "_Quid ad Magistocracy Venturam?_"

Rosalie's eyes glassed over, and she spoke. "_Magistocracy Valitque ea-_"

"I rest my case," Hazel cut the seemingly brainwashed woman off, as she continued to stare. "Apparently, dark guilds are using this now, secure communication. Kidnap, program a message, and then they kill the victim," she read off from the job posting.

The tall woman stopped for a second. "What can we do then?" She asked.

"Take her to the Rune Knights, hopefully they can extract the programming," Hazel finished.

"All right, we'll work together, take on anything that comes our way until then," the woman agreed. "But in exchange, I get half whatever they're paying you."

"And if I refuse?"

The woman paused, realizing that she didn't quite hold the cards here, and quickly thought of a better explanation, fully aware that the woman before her would certainly attack if she didn't come up with _something_ and quickly, the fact that she wouldn't have to was both a blessing and a curse.

As the standoff continued, a short man with wings not unlike Esie's-though they were pure white, more like that of a dove than a falcon-descended onto the scene. His hair was lavender, long and in a pony tail, and was greasy, as it shone in the sun, and his eyes a sharply contrasting shade of gray. He was also dressed in pants that matched his hair and a simple white shirt, along with riding boots. "Ashelia, I see you have brought my old cousin," He said, motioning to the taller woman, whose mouth was now agape.

"Well, here's the thing..." Ashelia muttered, as she put herself in front of Rosalie.

"Oh, I see..." The man sighed, as he looked on Hazel and Esie. "Just give her over and we'll be done here."

"Not a chance!" Hazel declared as she formed her mace, and charged at the man.

"Stellar Angel's Shriek!" He declared, as he lauched a hot light forward from his mouth, enveloping all four of those in front of him.

The land around the quartet was scorched, and Hazel, Esie, Ashelia, and Rosalie were all singed. This power was more than enough for all of them, no doubt about that.

"Unfortunately, with this information, I don't think it's a particularly good idea to leave you all alive..." he sighed.

* * *

**Crocus, Fiore, 2:30 PM.**

"And how did this town get to being this way?" Zavid asked, as the two disembarked in the nation's capital.

"As far as anyone knows, it had to do with a dark guild that once resided there. Apparently some experiment with time magic led to it," Grace explained.

"Time magic?"

"Yes, I think some kind of time loop effect. As far as I know, the New Magic Council banned the magic used to make it around 15 years ago."

"Is that common, the council banning magic?" Zavid asked.

"Somewhat, it's happened a few times in my own memory. Athletic Magic, Black Arts, White Arts, Seith Magic, certain kinds of time magic, magic that enslaves its victims, there are quite a few banned these days," Grace recalled.

"I take it there was less of that in an earlier era?" Zavid asked.

"You never run out of questions, do you?" Grace sighed. "I'm not sure, but we have a few hours before our train is to leave. I'd suggest you get comfortable."

"All right, I'm going to go for a cigarette then..." The young man muttered, feeling the withdrawal.

Grace gave a slightly disappointed look, but walked over to the ticket both, leaving Zavid to find the exit.

* * *

Zavid took out his pack, and began searching for his lighter. It seemed he'd forgotten it. Just his luck. Zavid scanned the area for others, and saw only one, a woman in her early twenties. She was a tall woman, with dark and messy short hair, and bright green eyes. Her clothes seemed the tiniest bit too small for her, her gray, low-cut shirt and light blue pants were tight to her buxom frame. Only her brown combat boots fit correctly. She was also smoking a black paper cigarette alone several feet away from him. "Excuse me," he said, directly.

"What do you need, mister?" She asked, much more enthusiastically than Zavid was expecting.

"Just a light," Zavid explained.

"Sure thing," the woman agreed, as she took out her lighter. It was a zippo type, black, and with a mishappen skull with horns protruding from either side printed on one side of the lighter proper. from the magic circle that emerged when the woman sparked it, it looked to be magic based.

"Thank you," Zavid said, as his own cigarette came to life.

"Don't mention it. I can tell you're a mage, what's that like?" The woman asked.

"I'm that obvious huh?" Zavid laughed. "You must have a goood sense for magic."

"More that you have a guild mark," the woman said, pointing to it.

"Oh, right, that, well, I'm a bit new to the life, I spent some time as a mercenary before," Zavid explained.

"How does it compare?"

"Well I guess it's a little bit safer, but a lot stranger. You could usually get a simple cause and effect as a mercenary. Find the enemy and kill them, that kind of thing. A guild mage is a different life, a bit more variety. I'm never quite sure what I'm up against. Apparently I'm supposed to fight a time loop next," Zavid said, laughing a bit at the last point.

The woman inhaled deeply from her cigarette. "Well, that sounds good right now. I'm trying to get my mind off of things."

"So do you plan to join one?"

"Something like that, I'm not much of a mage at this point though, I feel like I need to find a bit more experience first," she explained.

"What's your name?" Zavid asked, hoping to establish a bit of familiarity through the pitch.

"Erika, Erika Keltser."

"Zavid Stryder, and Erika, have you considered joining Phoenix Gear?" He asked.

Erika shrugged. "Can't say I've heard of it," She said.

"It's my guild, our new master is taking anyone who can so much as cast a spell, go to the town of Estrecho if you're interested," Zavid explained.

"I'll think about it," Erika sighed, as she stamped the ash from her exhausted cigarette and walked into the station. Zavid soon followed suit, and met Grace in seconds flat.

"Our tickets are secured, now we wait," Grace said, as the two found a bench. Out of the corner of Zavid's eye, he saw Erika at the ticket booth.

"Which line takes you to Estrecho?" She asked the attendant.

* * *

Esie was panicked. There was no way that they could beat this guy. He managed to almost KO all of the mages against him in seconds, and there would be no way that this was going to end well for them. To make matters worse, dark clouds seemed to be gathering in the distance. Flying would only be harder, and escape less likely. In a split second, he decided that now was the time to run. He darted back, grabbed Rosalie, and flew off.

"Hm, trying to leave, are we..." The man sighed, as he immediately took off after Esie.

"I don't suppose you can ground him?" Asked Hazel.

"Actually, I can!" Ashelia declared, as she adopted an odd pose and a green magic circle appeared under her. "Cyclone!" She declared, as her own arms turned into wings, which she used and the space around them turned to spinning air, with them in the proverbial eye of the storm. both flying figures began to struggle as the air itself pushed against them, and both landed, and yet something was out of place.

"Steller Angel's Wrath!" The man declared, a small flash of light occured, but fizzled out as quickly as it emerged. Both he and Esie seemed to be covered in what appeared to be ash, and strangely, it seemed to be limiting the man's power.

Hazel figured they had about thirty seconds before the man figured out how to get his power back. Taking advantage of his confusion, she swung at his head with her mace, and knocked him out, though the strain of this situation had made her forced to lean on her own mace.

"All right, let's get Rosalie out of here before he wakes up..." Ashelia sighed, knowing full well staying near that psychopath could only end in disaster.

* * *

**Phoenix Gear Guild Master's quarters, 4:10 PM.**

"Meat pie?" Adenna asked, as Margaret rolled out the dough.

"Do that not have that in Minstrel?" She asked, the concept seeming foreign.

"Not that I know of, I only ate things like apples and peaches in pies," Adenna explained, as she looked at the brewing storm outside of the house's window.

"Well I suppose there's a first time for everything," Margaret laughed, as she took the steak out of her oven.

"You cook the meat twice?"

"My own recipie does that, yes, keeps things a bit less messy, and preserves some more of the flavor of the beef. The trick is making it rare first, and cooking it to medium rare the second time," Margaret explained as she threw onions, greens, and gracy into the crust alongside the beef. Hopefully some of our mages will be back soon, though if I had to spend the day with anyone here, I'd choose you every time..."

That comment affected Adenna more than she was prepared to accept. The stuck-up, impatient, and accusatory master was hardly someone she could ever think of as _warm_, and here she was, desperate to please the S-Class Mage. There was something about her earnestness, something genuinely conflicted in her soul, in spite of Margaret's abrasive attitude, there was something to love in there. She had to stick around and find out, there was no doubt about that. All she could do now though, was joke about it. "You sure you don't want to learn more about Grace?" She quipped, earning a hearty laugh from Margaret as the latter set up the oven, and gave a cursory glance outside. Was that ash falling from the sky?

"Adenna, you ought to see this..." Margaret said, motioning the taller woman to the window.

* * *

**IAR Borderlands, 4:15 PM**

"This is Altair, come in master..." The short man sighed, from a convenient cave.

"What news do you bring, Altair?" A voice from the other end of the pocket-sized lacrima demanded.

"Rosalie escaped, the idiot we hired got set straight. Legal guild," Altair explained.

"Damn! Do we know of the guild?"

"Judging by the proximity, the most likely candidate is Phoenix Gear," the angel slayer responded, brushing the last of the snow off of him and feeling his magical energy boosted as he did so.

"Phoenix Gear? There's no way..." The voice on the other end muttered. "I suppose though that we should stay on alert. We already have an affiliate in the area, and a certain project available to them. Go there, and take over."

"Understood master," Altair signed off. "Right after this is over," he sighed as he stared at the black snowstorm outside.

* * *

**Outside Estrecho train station, 4:20 PM**

"Just my luck," Silvius sighed, as the back of money spilled out on the floor in front of him. He detached his hand, and set about sweeping up the cash. It was the work of a moment, and, gripping the re-sealed bag with his free hand, called the detached hand back to him. As it reattached, a snowflake fell on it, and his wrist bled slightly. "What the hell?" Silvius muttered.

* * *

Erika walked away from the same train, and at first noticed that the temperature was oddly cold, something that should not logically have been the case, and that the dark clouds seemed to be disseminating snow. What made this truly strange though was the fact that in the same moment, her own skin began to exude heat, as though she was intensely nervous. Though she felt incredibly calm. On top of all this, she felt almost compelled to take out her lighter. She sparked it again, and though it seemed to be weakened by the snow, it still flickered. Erika wasn't sure why, but something told her she should _eat_ the fire. "What the hell?" She thought aloud.

* * *

**A/N: Amazingly, this still isn't all of what I had planned for Chapter 3 (more like 90% of it), and I have yet another announcement to make! From this chapter forward, I'm going to start making a "create an OC contest." Submit an OC with the parameters I give out in the Author's note, and win a prize in story along with your character appearing! The runner up will also get something every update, here are the additional rules. Also! For those curious, the songs Cal sang in this chapter were This Suffering, by Billy Talent, and Lucifer's Hammer, by Virgin Steele.**

**1\. The normal rules apply, unless I suspend a rule for the contest.**

**2\. The character must comply with the specifications I lay out.**

**3\. This is competitive, meaning that only the best OCs will be accepted for the contest.**

**4\. Please include "contest entry" in the PM's subject line.**

**5\. The winner will be decided shortly before the next update, and announced in the end note of the next update. **

**The first contest: Create an OC who will be found in the town that Zavid and Grace will be visiting. The OC must be fairly young, a mage, and their character and backstory must deal with time displacement, either from the past or from the future. The winner's OC will join the guild.**

**With all of that said, Until Next Time!**

**Altair Seraphim created by Pine Swiftwings**

**Erika Keltser created by Dogtimus**

**Ashelia Faradrim created by ShadowWolf223**


	5. Deadly Storms and Dishonest Curs

**A/N: Well, Chapter 5 is here, we're going to see a lot more new OCs, and some new threats. Let's get started!**

* * *

**8 June X820, Somewhere in Estrecho, Fiore, 4:20 PM**

"Well, this is interesting..." An old man stifled a laugh as he walked out to a second-story balcony. The black snow was coming down, and covering the town. Perfect. All according to plan, of course. The man was not a mage himself, and so this blanket of obsidian scarcely bothered him. Even still, the sudden turn for the cold was less than pleasant for the Fiore native, and so he quickly returned to the lofted space, noting the guild hall in the background. "Now let's see how they handle it..." the man muttered, as he closed the door and gazed upon the machinations that made such a strange idea work flawlessly. Two seperate magical arrays. One to capture the subject's magical power, the other to bind additional barrier particles to it. After that, it was a simple matter of releasing the particles, and of course, a snow storm followed. As he walked in, the subject greeted him.

"Hey, I'm sorry, but I think I need to eat again..." the subject sighed.

The old man cracked a smile. He knew precisely why the nineteen year old woman who had become something of a roommate in the previous months. She was slight, at only five feet even. Her hair was green, wavy as it flowed down just past her shoulder blades, kept from her face by a simple plastic barette. The tiredness, and hunger both spiritual and physical were plain in her blue eyes. Despite the eyes and hair, the man assumed she was partially Encan, based on her features and shape of her eyes.

"Of course Penny," the man said, the cruel nature of his smile lost on the young woman. The man pulled an ice cream scoop out of his cloak, and walked to a freezer attached to the same Lacrima as the two arrays. He set to work and gave the subject yet another bowl of ice cream.

"Who are those people down stairs?" Penny asked, confused as she heard shouting from below, as she bit into the ice cream, which seemed to become ethereal and was sucked in.

"The people keeping us afloat..." the man sighed.

* * *

"Hang on, I need to go check on the garden," explained Adenna, as she rushed out of Margaret's kitchen, with a look of terror on her face. Margaret, curious about the situation, left her pie to bake.

As the young master followed the other woman out to the guild's garden, near the master's quarters, she noted that the temperature had dropped by tens of degrees. In the same moment, she noted that the black flakes falling from the sky were themselves cold to the touch. It wasn't ash, it was snow. "What the hell?" Margaret muttered aloud as she found Adenna, attempting to conjure her own plants. Something seemed wrong there. While Margaret had seen little of her companion's magic, what she had seen should have been stronger than this; it seemed that any plants she conjured crumbled into the barrier particles from whence they came, mere seconds after her summoning them. The culprit was obvious: the snow.

"Adenna?" Margaret called out, as she approached the other mage.

"I-I need to save it!" Adenna shouted, seemingly fighting back tears, as she attempted in vain to create foliage.

"We need to get inside. Nothing's going to happen out here," Margaret insisted, as she pulled the other mage back towards the A-Frame.

"Don't fucking make me leave it." Adenna said, pure venom in her voice.

Margaret backed off, and made a mental note not to be so pushy with the garden ever again. "

"All right, I'll see if I can fortify this against the snow..." Margaret said, trying to help.

Adenna softened for a moment. "Does planar magic work in this snow?"

"I couldn't tell you," Margaret said in turn as she attempted to activate her own magic, which formed a dark blue bubble over the garden, which stayed steady for a few seconds, and then dissolved as the snow accumulated.

Adenna glared at her. "You know what, let's come up with something inside..." She finally managed, becoming resigned to the situation.

* * *

"I'm kind of curious now, what's up with that garden?" Margaret asked, noting that Adenna seemed to have picked the vegetables for the currently cooking meat pie freshly, so it must have been something she'd maintained for a while.

"It's almost part of my identity. I grew up on a farm, and it's nice, saves us the cost of buying the vegetables that can grow around here," explained Adenna.

Margaret sighed. "I'm sorry for how curt I was earlier then, I guess I was a bit focused on the snow..."

"Hey, you couldn't have known, I forgive you," Adenna said, as she gave Margaret a reassuring hug. "I guess I didn't quite realize how important it was to me until now..."

"It's okay, we'll figure a way around this," affirmed Margaret.

"Where do we start?" Adenna responded in kind.

"Well, I'd say the first thing would be to figure out what this snow _is_, if there's some kind of precedent, we can figure it out, I guess we should look at the guild's historical records," Margaret explained, as the last of the snow melted, and her magical energy felt strong and stable once more. "Do you know where those would be?"

Adenna had to stifle a laugh. She had the initiative, the drive, and all, but she was still new to the guild. "I'll show you.

"Okay, just be sure to clear the snow off of you, I think it wears off if it melts..."

* * *

The hall was mostly as it had been, but as seemed almost normal at this point, there were unfamiliar figures populating the guild hall's main room. This time, it was three people; two were around Adenna's age, and the third seemed to be a small child. Standing in the front was another redhead woman, of a slightly different tone than either Margaret or Adenna. She was an average height for a woman, with hair in a long dutch braid, and was a fairly top-heavy variety of athletic. She had broader shoulders and smaller hips than one would normally see on a woman, and she seemed to be tanned from exposure to the sun. She wore an orange blouse with flower patterns and loose, high-waisted pants in a slightly darker shade of orange. Completing the ensemble was a pair of teal sandals. The second was a woman about the same height as the first, whose body was more average in build. She wore a simple blue shirt with a skull printed on it and black skinny jeans along with black combat boots. Her curly black hair reached her shoulders and seemed to complement her large brown eyes. There was snow still on her left arm, though it had begun to melt. Near the snow, the arm seemed metallic, connected by rivets, while the other parts of her arm seemed more human. The third appealed to be a young child, and yet his expression betrayed something a bit more. He was dressed in a jacket appropriate for the current weather, but out of place in Fiore's typical climate, alongside a white shirt and blue shorts. His ears were covered under blue headphones, which in turn matted a portion of his hair, a comparable shade of blue.

"New members?" Margaret asked, as the looked on the three figures before her.

"I guess so, we all saw your ad," the redhead explained. "Marina Lirion, by the way."

"Valeria Stone," the metal-armed woman said in kind.

"Nao Ecora," the child declared, perhaps a bit more dramatically than the other three.

"Okay, welcome to Phoenix Gear!" Margaret declared, as she got out the stamp to mark them. "Now, normally, I'm supposed to have you three fight established mages, but it's only Adenna and myself around right now. Everyone else is off on jobs, plus we're dealing with... something outside."

"Oh yeah, the fairies told me," Nao said, with a knowing look. "They said the place across the street was doing it..."

"For the last time, you aren't talking to fairies," Valeria sighed.

Margaret peered out of the front window, and saw, a fair distance across the way, a fairly normal, strip mall-looking building. She could just make out the sign, which she had not yet seen, and yet there it was, in bold letters: **Fundamentalist Church of Enoch**. "You know what, I'll allow it," she muttered, as she exited the guild hall, Adenna in tow.

* * *

Erika stared at the dying flame, the snow seeming to kill it bit by bit. She found the idea odd, but if there was one thing that was clear in this whole shitshow, it was that she'd lose the chance to figure out exactly what was going through her head, and really, when was the last time she regreted _doing _something? With a sigh, Erika, brought the lighter to her mouth and sucked in the flames. The heat that had welled up in her seemed to only become stronger with each morsel. Around her person, in the same brilliant moment, she saw pinkish flames rise around her body. Her clothes should have burnt off, and yet she was unharmed. Objectively, this seemed wrong, but god, nothing had felt more right. This moment, whatever it was, gave Erika a greater sense of peace and calm than she could ever remember having before. Her confidence renewed, she began following the man whom she had just seen detach and re-attach his hand, figuring that he of all people would be a mage. The road seemed dilapidated, but her own childhood was fraught with the same form of poverty. If anything, this Estrecho felt something like home. Of course, the staircase that led to the guild hall seemed to be the busiest segment of any road she had seen in this town, with a preacher speaking to the crowd.

"This guild... Enoch would only call this abominable!" The priest's voice rang out. "Magic was his gift, and there is no use for it besides bringing about his will and his kingdom unto our world!"

"Fuck are you talking about?" Hand guy stopped, undoubtedly in no mood to hear the schpiel he had undoubtedly endured countless times before.

"You know it in your heart, and on this of all days, you should know it in your mind," the preacher declared, as he pointed to the sky.

"What?"

"This strange, ashen snow. It is Enoch's wrath. The Testament of Metatron tells us that with the people turning from Enoch's word, his own wrath would return. The skies will snow black, the seas boil over, and the land swallow any it sees fit..." The man declared.

"And I find it suspicious that your little chimney there seems to be spitting out the clouds," A third voice rang out, as its owner came into view.

Margaret and Adenna walked with an odd confidence based on the seemingly apocalyptic weather, and any time the snow fell near them, it seemed to instead fly upward, landing several feet away.

"My child, we are merely keeping warm as the temperature falls," the man protested. "It is not the concern of a sinful guild's master."

"Sinful huh?" That seemed to really set Margaret off, as she raised her arm.

"Margaret, focus, we have to shut it down according to that kid," Adenna sighed. Margaret, seemingly on cue, lowered her arm, as Erika watched on in awe. It was clear that the guild master before her had the kind of strength that she was seeking. Of course, what could a mage that powerful want with someone like her? In that moment, Erika felt worthless, and yet, her feeling seemed only to push her forward. After all, if she didn't wouldn't that just prove the person she hated most _right? _While lost in thought, Erika nearly failed to notice that the man with the detaching hand and the guild master, along with the companion had abandoned the preacher and had entered the church.

The indoor space of the church was not at all what Margaret had expected, it was hardly the cathedral type structure she had come to think of as a church. If anything, it looked more like a hollowed-out convenience store with folding chairs put forth in rows,a cheaply made raised platform as an altar, and a priest standing at the plywood pulpit.

"Ah, repentant sinners, I hope?" The priest asked, with a wry smile.

"Not exactly..." Margaret sighed. "How about you let us see what's happening up there?" She asked, pointing to the staircase off to her right, the preacher's left.

"Enoch would not force his people to suffer his wrath, not when it is directed at those worldly sinners, this is merely our method of keeping warm," the man said, with a sneer.

"Well then, I don't see why we can't go upstairs and sort that out then," Margaret said, confidently, as she walked over to the staircase, suspecting that she may be stopped in the process.

Sure enough, only a few steps away from the stairs, the floor seemed to open, putting her seemingly in the middle of the building's foundation.

"You see?" The priest demanded. "This poor nonbeliever has fallen victim to Enoch's wrath, truly our god finds his target!"

Erika felt like she may as well melt into the floor and join Margaret. What if this guy was right? Just like that, her opportunity was gone, seemingly devoured on a cruel god's whim. All she could do was hope that god wouldn't turn its sights on her, she supposed. Just as she was about to fall on her knees, the floor broke into pieces, the stones that took its place colored dark blue, and a slightly bemused Margaret at its epicenter.

"That was nothing, just a basic architecture magic spell. Fuck, I think you may just be the weakest mage here," Margaret sighed, as she looked at the priest, closing with a stuck-out tongue.

"You take that back!" The man shouted as he raised his arm and flung a piece of rubble at the guild master, who immediately reduced it to unviable dust.

"Those are mine now, I'll let you use them only if you fight the one opponent I think is at your level..." Margaret explained.

"And who might that be?"

Margaret pointed at Erika. "You'd probably lose to her, but it would be close."

Erika's emotional cocktail continued. Now all of the sudden this strange woman whom she had heard called a guild master believed that she could take on this full-fledged mage. Sure, it seemed like her own power was _there, _and yet, she'd never cast a spell before, at least not on purpose. How was she supposed to beat this guy, when Margaret herself was letting him use his magic? Then again, it was like the snow outside couldn't touch her. Maybe there was something there.

"I accept!" She blurted out, as she stepped down from the small island of floor that she, Adenna, and Silvius were standing on. Margaret thought enough to spare them the destruction, she supposed.

"Very well," the priest muttered, as he waved his hand and sealed the staircase.

"Damn. Should have guessed that one," Margaret thought to herself.

"Now, to start!" The man declared, as he formed the rubble into a massive hand, and grabbed Erika using it.

"Oh god! What did I get myself into!?" Erika shouted out as the hand closed around her. Initially, it seemed like she was wrong. Guild life couldn't be for her, if this was going to happen, crushed to death by a mage that this guild master considered too weak for her to even bother fighting herself.

"Shouldn't you stop him?" Adenna asked, as Margaret looked on intently, her fists clenched, and her face difficult to read.

"I'll give this new mage a little more time," Margaret explained, as she focused her gaze on the hand.

Erika, as she began to take her mind off the fear, and in a brief moment where she may have accepted being crushed to death otherwise, she felt her old friend, her cigarette lighter, in her pocket. Wriggling her arm free, she managed to spark the lighter once more, and gorged herself on fire once more. After eating her fill, She cracked a smile, cleared her mind, and mentally pushed the fire away. In a moment, there was a brilliant burst of energy, and the hand broke back into pieces. Erika dropped to the floor in a soft landing, and turned to face the priest again. "My turn," she said, and formed a magic circle with a demonic face not unlike the one on her lighter in the center. Though she couldn't describe this spell, she ran, faster than that priest could react, and punched him in the face with a fiery fist. He went down in one hit.

"Bravo," Margaret said, as she came up to Erika, the latter's rush fading.

"How did I do that?" The younger mage muttered.

"Well I'm not quite sure myself, you're probably some kind of slayer, I guess a devil slayer based on how your magic circle looked."

Erika tripped as she walked forward. "Guess I'm still not ready to use that kind of power," she sighed.

"All right, Silvius, take her back to the guild," Margaret instructed, as she began feeling the wall where the staircase once was.

"What are you looking for?" Adenna asked.

"Trying to figure out whether he was able to restructure the building or if he just covered it up. I'm pretty sure such a rudimentary mage would only close it off..." Margaret muttered as she knocked on the wall. It sounded hollow. "I was right," she said as she coated her arm in dark blue haze and punched through the wall, exposing the staircase. She crawled through the broken wall, Adenna following close behind. The top floor proved a bit more domestic than Margaret had assumed, and was a simple scene, with the two residents simply seated at a kitchen table. Margaret though, knew better. It was clear to her that the lines drawn along the floor were there for one reason only: to collect barrier particles.

"Oh, hello," the old man said. "It's not often we have visitors up here, the church was kind enough to take us in you see..."

"Cut the crap," Margaret said, a forceful tone in her voice.

"What do you mean?" His young companion blurted out. "I've been sick for months, and he's made sure I got food and everything."

Her standing up gave Margaret a good look at how malnourished the girl seemed to be, despite the pantry near the back of the room seeming stocked to the brim. It seemed as though every stray calorie the girl ate was being used for... something else. In that moment, Margaret put two and two together, and realized that the girl was what was making the snowstorm, and the lines were sapping her eternano; aaaand she was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. Great...

"All right, Adenna, break up the floor," Margaret commanded, as she set her sights on the old man.

Adenna complied, growing thorn bushes from the floor, and splintering the wood. In the same moment, the machines stopped. Margaret peered out of the window. The snow was still going, but up in the sky, Margaret could see that the flow of snow from the clouds had ceased. Things would be back to normal in a few hours.

"You can't prove anything!" The man shouted, as he lunged towards the machines, seemingly desperate to destroy them. His attempte was quickly quashed, as a dark blue chain ensnared him.

Margaret reeled him in, as Penny fell to the floor, crying.

"It's okay, we'll get you looked at," Margaret promised, as she fell into the master's arms.

* * *

**8 June X820, Southbound Line, Somewhere in Fiore, 5 PM. **

"How far until we're there?" Zavid asked, looking out at the forest, which was turning increasingly tropical.

"Well, supposedly it should be another half hour, and from what I've heard, things will get a bit strange as we near the town's limits. Extinct animals, armies from long ago, things like that," Grace explained.

"So tell me about these rules you mentioned," Zavid said. "After all, I'm not interested in being trapped in an eternal time loop the first time I go on an S-Class job."

"Well, it should be fairly simple. Apparently, it's mostly tied to the amount of magic you use. If your barrier particles are completely replaced by those inside of the town, then you'll be trapped, the time itself will bend so that you can never leave," Grace explained.

"So you can't be there too long?"

"Yes and no, your particles won't deplete over time, and you won't really get hungry or tired. Time doesn't really pass in this place, even though it would seem to. It all comes down to using your magic."

"So it will take a bit more than just magical strength to take this mission on?" Zavid guessed.

"Exactly. The good news is all we have to do is recover an artistic plate that was left there when our client stopped there by mistake," Grace agreed.

"Good, let's hope this goes quickly then," the younger mage sighed as the train pulled in the station.

"Pulling into Harveytown now!" The conductor announced through the intercom, as the train stopped, seemingly in the middle of an empty field. As the duo disembarked, the station seemed to materialize, a modern building with shops, restaurants, and a ticket office, not unlike the station in Crocus. In the same moment, the shops disappeared, and it was a bare-bones platform, with a simple staircase going down to a ghost town, which proceeded to flicker into a bustling city.

Zavid tensed a bit as the unfamiliar setting made itself known. "I'm going to buy a lighter-I hope..." He muttered, as he did so at a stand that flickered into existance and then flickered out. The lighter itself transitioned between the form seen first and a matchbook. "All right, let's get to work Grace. Grace?" He asked, as the old woman he recognized seemed to be gone, replaced by a woman his age, blue haired, and with a double-breasted red coat.

"Sure, why not?" The now young Grace asked.

* * *

**8 June X820, Ibex Skull Guild Hall, Ishvan Autonomous Region, 5 PM.**

"What are you talking about? Phoenix Gear hasn't been any trouble as long as this guild has existed," the man behind the master's desk insisted. He was tall, with a bald head, and sunglasses. His build was muscular, and that seemed to be tied to his preferred style of magic. The name in front of him read "Diego Toral."

"Well my being grounded in flight tells a different story," Altair sighed, as he looked around the cramped space. A repurposed mountain cave was hardly something he was used to in a guilid hall, and the small affilate in the region seemed a bit unaccountable. There were few luxuries, and it seemed that the mages that were in this guild slept in a common set of cots behind the guild hall proper.

"What are you even here about?" Diego demanded, as he attempted to stare down the shorter man, who responded in kind by spiking his magical aura, something which put the lower-level master off of any ideas.

"Phoenix Gear is starting to become a thorn in the side of our operations, after an important message was intercepted by one of their number. As such, your attempt at an assault on the New Magic Council's constitutional revision may be threatened," Altair explained. "I am here to act as additional support, so to ensure it goes well."

"Why do we need you? We already have that special project," Diego motioned to a figure dressed as an executioner, in a black cloak and hood. Only the figure's eyes were visible. They were black and beady.

"mmm..." The figure managed.

"Kinda creeps me out, hasn't said a thing since you folks brought them here..." Diego sighed.

"I wouldn't reccommend pressing," Altair said, firmly. "As I was saying, the situation could get hairy, and our operation hinges on the constitutional renegotiation going south, so I have been assigned here to aid against the threat that Phoenix Gear presents," Altair explained.

Diego seemed to submit upon hearing that. "All right. Sherry! Show our guest his quarters!"

At that, a woman who looked to be a few years past 50 sprang up, though perhaps not as bubbly as she had once been. Sherry Blendy's red hair had faded into a partial gray, and her features were lightly wrinkled. What seemed most obvious about her though, was her eyes. There was a bit of intensity, anger, and focus that had been largely absent in her younger years. This was a woman who had been betrayed, and lost everything for it.

"Yes, of course, and what a fine fellow he is..." She muttered, seemingly sincere, and incredibly desperate. The last phrase gave Altair a chill, despite knowing that he probably outclassed her.

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore, 5:30 PM.**

"Margaret?" Penny said, as they entered the hall.

"Yes?"

"After all of that, thanks for letting me join up," she said, seemingly relieved.

"It's nothing, there wasn't much else for me to do. Just be sure you see that therapist they referred you to, you need to make sure that you're making these kinds of decisions on your own," Margaret reminded her, as the young woman's eyes quickly flitted around, seeing the new mages, and joining them at their table.

"After today, I think the fight can wait until tomorrow," Margaret sighed.

"I guess now's as good a time as any to eat..." Adenna agreed.

"Fuck!" The pie is probably burnt by now!" Margaret shouted, as she ran out the back door, followed by the S-Class mage once more.

* * *

**A/N: Zavid and Grace will finally get their time in the next chapter, and don't think for a second that I've forgotten about the other mages, their stuff will be resolved next chapter! Also, Contest results:**

**This chapter's contest winner is: Yngvarr Frey!**

**Congratulations and thanks to all who submitted; the runner up will also be contacted.**

**Next contest: All rules apply, and I'm looking for an OC who will establish themself in the building across from the Guild Hall. They should be a business owner, and the other details are more or less up to you. Mage or not mage, for or against the guild, that much is your choice!**

**Now then, get your OCs in, and let's fill up the guild's roster. Until next time!**

**Penny Luma created by SerpentFeather.**

**Marina Liron created by Firealis.**

**Valeria Stone created by Gray Cloud 12.**

**Nao Ecora created by ZylerZodiac.**

**Diego Toral created by The Impostor.**


	6. Dark Guilds and Strange Villages

**A/N: Okay, so we're nearing the end of the first arc. I'm hoping to have the whole thing wrapped up by Chapter 8. Rest assured, the second arc will have even more in store, and the story will have its own twists and turns. The OC stuff is coming nicely as well. We've got a few spots left, and I'd love to fill them out before too long! With all of that out of the way, let's get started!**

* * *

**8 June X820, Oasis Roadside Buffet, just south of Estrecho, 5:30 PM.**

"And with that, you've eaten _everything,_" Cal laughed, as Lunick downed a particularly strange looking piece of what looked to be egg.

"Damn, I couldn't stomach much of that at all," agreed Elya, as the buffet's owner looked on in shock.

"You ate everything?" He demanded, his eyes growing wide.

"Well you said it was all you can eat..." Lunick sighed, as he got up.

"Not to worry sir, our guild is getting very wealthy, we'll cover the damages... soon," Cal said, desperately, as he and the other two bolted out the door, forgetting the snow, though it was light enough at that point that the risk of accumulation was slim to none.

"So, Lunick, what was up with your family?" Elya asked, as the party began walking back to Estrecho, into the forest and past the hut.

"I'm not really sure. They always said they raised me, and found me out in the desert, but I can't really tell. I guess my eyes are different, so maybe..." Lunick sighed, lost in thought, as he lagged behind the others, and ran to catch up after the fact. It was at this point that the two mages saw that he was also furiously clutching a medallion that seemed to resemble a stylized, anthropomorphic sun.

"What's up with that?" Elya asked, her curiousity piqued.

"I'm not sure, my family said it was on me when they found me as an infant..." Lunick sighed, equal parts confused and distressed.

"Sounds like you're a bit torn up about it," Cal muttered.

Lunick strained. "No, nothing at all, I'm just a bit curious."

"Curious?"

"Well I never knew what happened to my 'parents,'" he sighed. "The ones that made me I mean..."

"We understand," Elya sighed, a bit taken aback by Lunick's blunt nature.

"Well either way, All I remember is a symbol," Lunick explained. "Kind of stuck in my head."

"All right, well I'm sure if you'll ever find anyone to help with that, it'll be in a mage guild," Cal said.

"Can you draw the symbol?" Elya asked.

Lunick winced. "Maybe some other time..." he sighed, as the party made their return to Estrecho proper.

"I didn't realize your guild was right here," Lunick said, seemingly familiar with the area.

"You've been around here?" Asked Cal.

"Entertained, robbed a few houses, not much to rob though, so we usually focused on trains and travelers going around on foot," Lunick explained.

"I guess that makes sense..." Elya muttered. "Hey, you two can take off, I'm going make a copy of this map before I get it to the Rune Knights."

* * *

**8 June X820, Rune Knight Office #796, West of Estrecho, Fiore, 5:40 PM.**

"All right, so you're saying this woman has been brainwashed?" The Rune Knight manning the desk said, with a good deal of poise, even enthusiasm, not at all the beaten down tone that Hazel was expecting.

"Yes, she doesn't seem to be a proper dark mage, rather, she's a vessel," Hazel repeated, Ashelia peering beyond the front desk, hidden by walls around the waiting room.

"Please don't do that," the knight sighed, her thick blonde hair, in an oddly masculine bowl cut. Her stature, around six feet, seemed to maker her slightly uncomfortable while she sat at the low-lying desk. Her uniform hid her athletic frame, and it was only through her blue eyes that some resolve was seen. This woman's place was not behind a desk, that much was certain.

"Do what?" Ashelia smirked.

"The public is not meant to see our operations up close, it's a matter of security," the woman explained.

"Well uh-" Hazel began, addressing the attendant, but not knowing her name.

"Artemis."

"Artemis, can you take the spell out of Rosalie here?" Hazel asked.

"It should be possible, but we may have to move her to the council's headquarters. We have some technology that might be able to exorcise her," Artemis said. "The Rune Knights can take over at that point, your services are no longer needed."

"All right, we'll be on our way then," Hazel insisted, as she dragged Ashelia out, Esie in tow.

"What's up?" The taller woman asked, as the three began moving towards Estrecho.

"You handled yourself pretty well in the battle there, I think there's someone you ought to meet," Hazel explained.

Esie scowled lightly.

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore, 5:40 PM**

"So, what's up with the three of you?" Erika asked, a strong resolve in her voice.

"I'm from the coast here in Fiore," Marina said, shifting her weight as she closed herself off with her body language.

"Well I kind of have a Machia's arm. Long story," Valeria said, as she demonstrated this, morphing her arm into a blade and back.

"I guess fairies kind of raised me..." Nao began.

"For the last time, no, they didn't. What are you, eight?" Marina shot a disapproving look at him.

"I'm twenty four for your information," At that point Erika did a double take.

"I don't age, fairies," Nao said, seeing Erika's expression.

"You get used to it, that's what he says about... Well, everything," Valeria offered, as Erika looked to her as well.

"Well I guess I'm not the strangest person around here," Erika thought to herself, flashing a smile. "I'm just glad I found this place. Long story short, I'm not really sure why I can use this... I think Margaret called it 'Devil Slayer' magic, and well, I haven't had the best previous five years," she explained.

"How so?" Valeria asked.

"Have you heard about the island of Siren, in Cae Elum?" Erika asked.

Valeria flashed a smile. "I hear it's beautiful there," she gushed, but ceased as she saw the somewhat downcast expression of Erika.

Nao and Marina seemed unfamiliar. Erika spoke up again. "It's a small island in Cae-Elum's archipelago. I lived there, and there's a somewhat rare variety of Lacrima that's fairly abundant there. We used to make money by trading it with Midi, but they kind of went under after government debt wrecked them. That was about twenty years ago. My parents used to be miners, but got laid off after that. It wasn't like we could export much further either. Anywhere else could get it from Joya quicker and cheaper..."

Erika was interrupted by the sound of Margaret and Adenna returning.

"Sorry about ruining the pie..." Margaret sighed, looking up at her taller companion.

"Don't worry about it, it's not like you could have predicted that an evil scientist was going to start raining magic cancelling snow from the sky," Adenna laughed, giving Margaret a hug in kind.

"Thanks, but I guess we've got to eat..." Margaret offered.

"Sure, I know a great hole-in-the wall that sells some amazing Sinan Noodles," Adenna reassured, as the two left.

"Well, long story short, mom was looking for a way out, and she was more interested in getting me to stay quiet," Erika sighed.

"What about your magic then?" Asked Marina.

"I'm not sure, I'm not even clear on what a slayer is. I didn't even think to eat fire until today," Erika sighed. "I guess I could have gotten it from anything."

"Well, either way, it's going to take more than that to make this whole thing work," a fourth voice rang out, as its owner stepped into view.

"Penny, right?" Erika asked, as she extended her hand.

"Yeah, I guess we're all new here..." She muttered, stepping lightly to the table.

Erike perked up, more forceful than ever before. "But hey, Margaret is trying to make this guild work, right? It's all on us, we're the ones that get to make the guild into... whatever it'll be!" She declared, with a fist raised to the air.

* * *

**8 June X820, Ibex Skull Guild Hall, Ishvan Autonomous Region, 6 PM.**

"Wyverns?" Altair asked, as he noted the reptilian beasts in front of them, in a natural pit below the main cave.

"Yes, we raise them here, and use them any time we need to fight a pitched battle," the assigned mage explained. This mage was a tall man, with long blonde hair, a sort of lean athletic frame, and a face that seemed off. It was as though one of his eyes was focused on a single point, while the other still worked. His nose was sheared off, with only a set of holes where it had once been.

"Interesting," Altair affirmed, unprepared for the strange appearance of the man.

"We'll come back to that later," Sherry said, as she carted the diminutive mage away.

"Here is your accommodation," she said, as they turned from a communal sleeping space, and into a small, sequestered cavern of similar character. The room was nominally more private, but every bit as spartan as the common dorm. It consisted of a crude bronze mirror, a stone bowl of water, and a modest bedroll.

"Thanks," Altair muttered, expecting Sherry to leave him be.

"Hang on, I think I'd like to get to know you a bit better."

Altair sighed, but turned his head. Maybe there was something to learn here.

"You know, I used to be in a guild like the one we're facing now," Sherry began, as Altair took a seat on the bedroll, and the woman took off the knit jacket, fully exposing her gothic pink dress, which may have been popular 35 years ago, but now seemed woefully out of date.

"Oh?" Altair responded in kind.

"Yes, we were called Lamia Scale, the guild is still around," Sherry continued, after Altair gave an affirming nod.

"Well what happened then?" Altair asked.

"It all began about 15 years ago..." Sherry began.

* * *

**Flashback: 10 November X805, Margaret Town, Fiore, 3PM**

The bald, imposing figure standing in front of Sherry could not have been more obvious in his intentions. His face seemed soft. He hated to do this to her, but it wasn't as though he had a choice.

"Unfortunately, Sherry Blendy, former mage of Lamia Scale, due to the new laws surrounding Doll Play Magic, and your unwillingness to train in a new magic style, I must expel you from the Lamia Scale Guild," he sighed, as the figure before him began fighting back tears.

"What do you expect me to do then?" Sherry demanded, as she hid her face, the tears starting to flow now.

"You have a husband, a member of Blue Pegasus, do you not?" Jura noted, seemingly encouraging in his tone.

"Yes, I do."

"Discuss this with him, and I further encourage you to reconsider learning another form of magic. You are still a trusted companion here, I assure you," Jura said, as Sherry bolted from the guild hall.

* * *

**Flashback: One year later.**

"Hello ma'am," the Rune Knight said, as the door to the couple's house was blasted off of its hinges.

"What are you after?" Sherry demanded.

"We've heard reports that dark magic was being used in the area. A house of this description suddenly dropped in terms of value, and local children have reported a woman controlling animals as though they were puppets, particularly a large rat," the man explained.

"And what are you insinuating?"

"Well ma'am, we believe that you may just know something about this, and as such we'd like to-" Sherry raised her hand, and in a moment, the man dropped to his knees, suffocating.

"Excellent work, my love!" Sherry laughed, as Ren, terror plain on his face, stepped forward in time with Sherry's hand motions. "Now, I'd say this isn't a great place to stay..."

* * *

**Flashback: Three Months Later.**

"Open, Gate of the Archer: Saggitarius!" Lucy called out, as the strangely dressed figure emerged beside her, joining Virgo on her right, and the Star Dress in Cancer Form equipped to Lucy herself.

"We'll see how you fare in a vacuum," Sherry laughed, as she motioned for Ren to remove the air from the vicinity. As he did so, Saggitarius fired an arrow, which only flew faster without the air resisting it, and found its mark in Ren's stomach. He collapsed, alive but injured. Virgo soon burrowed under the battlefield in kind, and chained Sherry's wrists and ankles in stone. Lucy walked towards her old acquaintance.

"Give up. Now." She ordered.

"Perhaps you forgot about our first meeting," Sherry managed. "Angelica!" She called out, as a certain oversized rat dropped from the sky, as had happened on Galluna Island a good thirty years ago.

Lucy cut the rat in half. A simple swipe of her red swords left the rat in two pieces, and Sherry devastated.

"How- how could you!?" Sherry demanded, as she gave Lucy the most venomous stare the latter had ever seen.

"You've been using your husband as a human puppet, you've enslaved half of Margaret Town's ecosystem, and you've tried to kill the guild mage sent to track you down, I'd say there's quite a bit of legroom here on my part," Lucy answered.

"Well we can't all have our ethically dubious magics avoid scrutiny. And only a few people can marry the most powerful guild master in the country," Sherry spat back.

"Shut up," Lucy managed.

* * *

**End Flashback.**

I spent a few years in prison after that, met Xander, he's the Wyvern Tamer you met earlier, in prison. Soon as I got out, I joined his guild," Sherry finished, as she began anxiously pulling at her dress, her intentions clear.

Altair let the situation play out. He wasn't exactly interested in a desperate woman over 50 throwing herself at him, and yet if nothing else, she seemed useful. What was that old quote? 'Everything is about sex, except sex. Sex is about power.'

Before Sherry could strip though, a figure burst through the cavern's threshold.

"Master Diego is briefing us on the upcoming job," the figure said. She was a tall woman, in her mid twenties, and fit. Her eyes were purple, and her hair light brown, in a simple, shoulder-length cut. She wore a simple black t-shirt with a red tie loosely around the neck, and red shorts, but what stood out about her most was the gem on her forehead, a color similar to her eyes.

The three walked out into the main guild hall, where the small tables had been collected into one, with Master Diego at one end with a seemingly collapsing chalk board. Around the table was Xander, the 'special project,' along with some other mages whom Altair didn't recognize. While a few seemed stronger, such as a casually dressed young woman with a blonde pony tail, and a lanky man with an unfortunate blonde bowl cut. and a flamboyant maroon suit, most didn't seem especially notable. It seemed Ibex Skull needed all of the help it could get.

"Altair, join me," Diego said, in a shaky tone.

Altair complied, as the master crudely tacked a set of images to the board. "All right, as our superiors have assigned us, we are to shake the general public's faith in the New Magic Council, and as it happens, a key event in maintaing that faith is happening in two days, here in the IAR. Here, Fiore's political delegation, including the royal family and the Fiore Grand Legislature, will join and negotiate changes to the Magic Council's constitution. On the board were a city, a specific building, and a blueprint. "Now while there will be Rune Knights present as security, guild masters and mages should be absent, as they operate more or less independently under the new bylaws. As such, Rune Knights are typically a lower level threat, but there is a local legal guild that might give us trouble, according to Altair's intel. At this point, he tacked up another image, that of a crude drawing of a phoenix in profile, with a gear around the back. "Phoenix Gear. They were once a pathetic nothing of a guild, not even worth our time, but based on their recent actions, Altair has advised us to change plans slightly... Altair, take it away."

Altair sighed slightly. "All that is happening is that we're beefing up your forces, in the interest of keeping the operation smooth, our guild has sent myself, as well as three other mages. They will not be on my own level; I am the only member of the Ten Great Captains who will be aiding your efforts, the other nine are preoccupied with their own pursuits," he explained. "The other three should be here tomorrow, in preparation for the strike."

"Phoenix Gear..." the woman in black and red muttered to herself.

"You okay Violet?" Sherry asked.

"Yeah, fine, I just remembered I had some business to take care of," Violet muttered.

"Well if it's important, get on with it now, we need to make sure we're prepared for the attack," Sherry said, still slightly annoyed at her guild mate.

"Don't worry, I can knock it out tonight," Violet responded.

* * *

**8 June X820, Harveytown, Southern Fiore, 5PM**

"What's going on?" Zavid asked, seeing the young woman where Grace once stood.

"I don't know," young-Grace said, with a smile. "I'm not complaining though."

"Well, I guess this is more to do with the temporal weirdness?" Zavid asked.

"Seems like it. I suppose it's to our advantage. I was a bit stronger in my twenties after all."

"Well, either way, I'd say it's time to recover this plate," Zavid sighed, as the two exited the train station, and found themselves in a lively town square. The state of the town did shift, as did the train station itself. One moment, it was an agrarian common, with grass huts and a crude wooden fence, livestock replacing people in some cases, to a more medieval town with a strong castle wall, and into a modern town, with pieces of the castle wall preserved as historical landmarks. Beyond that, there seemed to be a fairly consistent structure to the roads, even as the buildings shifted from felt tents to apartment complexes. "Where is it supposed to be?"

"He said the building was a temple to a god whose name I didn't recognize. Probably from another era," Grace explained, as seemingly in time with this, a strange building seemingly made of mercury. It shifted in shape, until the spires resembled a cathedral, and seemed to beckon the two inside.

"Well, it seems like we've found our temple."

The interior of the temple was as strange as the exterior. It was pure white, and seemed to shift as needed. Two chairs emerged as Zavid and Grace entered, made of the same amorphous material as the exterior. Meanwhile, a floor of similar material formed, and a rough shape, much like a church as the two would understand it came into being.

"Hello there," A voice rang out, as its owner also came into focus. It was a young woman with jet-black hair, and dressed in what seemed to be the robes associated with... whatever this religion was supposed to be. She wore a white robe with blue lining on each side, and a stylized blue eye in the center. On her head she wore a simple nurse's cap.

"Hello, we need to have a look around. We're looking for a printing plate, gold should have a painting on it," Grace explained.

"Well I'm sorry but I don't know where something like that would be, much less in a place like this. We take the time as it comes," the priestess said, cryptically.

"The time?" Zavid asked.

"Yes, haven't you seen?" The priestess asked, with a confused look. "These days, time is all that there is. They say it happened 100 years ago."

"What year is it?" Zavid demanded, realizing that this could be any point in time.

"It's-" The priestess began, before seeming to freeze in place.

"Goddamn it..." Sighed Zavid.

In the same moment, a figure emerged from the Priestess' shadow; rather, it seemed like it _was _her shadow, and yet it very much wasn't. This figure was hulking, angry, seemingly tortured.

"No!" The priestess shouted. "They're here!"

The shadow figure stepped forward, and seemingly assimilated the priestess into itself, whose tortured face appeared where the hulking creature's head should roughly have been, before fading, and joining what felt like a chorus of voices.

"Well, it's time I fought something..." Zavid sighed, as he took a battle stance, requipping two thin blades. "Form 0: Break!" He declared as he stabbed the beast with one of his swords. A burst of magical energy seemed to shoot out of the sword as he made contact with the shadow-being.

At first, this seemed to work. The being collapsed, leaking a black fluid, but just as soon as is flowed outward, it retreated back inside, and the figure stood above the duo.

"Revulsion point!" Grace shouted, as a pillar of what seemed to be pure, semi-translucent light, filled a cylinder's worth of space with the two mages in its center. The figure swiped, and as it touched the light, it suddenly found itself flung across the room.

"How did you do that?" Zavid asked.

"It was a trick I could pull in my prime," Grace explained. "I can make one thing never touch a small area. Of course, we'll have to find the plate and leave at some point, but at least we have time to think now.

"I... nOt SO surE!" The beast exclaimed, as it morphed its essence slightly, shifting into a quadrupedal form, and charging at the safe harbor. It barreled through it, tackling both mages.

Zavid raised his left blade in time to mitigate the impact. "Form 3: Shinsegumi!" His right-hand blade glowed dark purple as he swiped at the monster with it. The shadow was once again sent flying, into the altar.

The shadow simply got back up. "mAn strong. STRONG for Our likING!" It charged the two once again.

"Form 7: Blitz!" Zavid slashed wildly at the beast, carving it into many pieces. "And what's done is done..." Zavid sighed, as he and Grace inspected what remained.

"Now about that plate," Grace said, as the two turned their backs, to find something even stranger, a young woman, maybe a year or two younger than Zavid. She had a spear, puncturing her left lung, and yet there was no blood, and from the sounds she made, she seemed to be alive, though not entirely there.

"tHat hurt..." The being muttered, as the droplets that remained reformed into the same being.

Instinctively, Zavid grabbed the spear that was lodged the woman moments ago. "You never learn, do you?" he said, annoyed. He took another stance.

Before Zavid could strike again, mysterious characters, the nature of which he didn't recognize, appeared on the beast, which promptly disappeared, simply "popped" out of existence. Standing behind the mage duo, there was the now-conscious woman.

"What the fuck are you doing in here?" She demanded, her unkempt blue-violet hair shaking as she cringed in sheer disbelief.

"We're guild mages, on a job," Grace explained.

"I'm not sure what that is..." the woman muttered, her intense blue eyes sizing the two up, but quickly softening. She was tall, and seemed to have a good deal of 'softness' about her, even born out in her strangely loose clothes. Her shirt was light blue, and looked almost like the top half of a kimono, and was tied with a darker blue sash, which matched her loose fitting pants.

"That's not important, what is is how you managed to kill whatever that thing was," Grace replied, genuinely impressed.

"I didn't kill it, I just put it a few seconds into the future."

"Wait, so it'll be back?" Zavid asked, suddenly concerned.

"No, not like that. The passage of time is a bit odd here, and this temple exists within a single, solitary moment. As such, putting that thing a few seconds in the future will make it so it can't affect us in this moment," the woman explained.

"Thanks," Zavid said. "I don't suppose you could help us with something else here?"

"Shoot."

"Well, the best way I can explain this is that for right now, it's our job to find a specific golden plate. Someone is paying us to find it, and he believes that he left it here," Zavid explained. "The thing is, I'm not really sure how to go about finding it, especially considering how this plays moves and warps and all of that."

"Well, that's easy," the woman said as more strange characters bubbled up from her hands. "All I have to do is look at every possible version of this moment," she continued, as the characters increased in number and formed into a small screen. "Let's see here... Is this it?" She asked, showing a zoomed-in version of one such future, where a portly man, seemingly terrified by the interior, ran out, leaving a panel of gold behind.

"It has to be," Grace agreed, as the picture expanded, and the three stood in the hall, empty save for the plate.

"Great work, I'm Zavid by the way," Zavid said.

"Wynnefried Forst," the woman answered, shaking Zavid's hand.

"Can we call you Wynn?" Grace asked.

"Sure can," she said, as the three left the temple and exited into the town's main drag once more.

**9PM**

"Wait, it wasn't this dark when we went in..." Zavid noted.

"Nor I, I think it only really connects to the rest of the town at certain times, and it'll spit you out at the next closest time," Wynn explained.

"It seems like you know a lot about this place," Grace noted. "How long have you been here?"

"Only about a month and a half, I've been keeping track with my magic," Wynn answered, showing off the mysterious characters again.

"So are you trapped here?" Zavid asked, a bit concerned.

"Not at all, I've figured out all of the back doors to this place."

"Back doors?" Grace asked in kind.

"So the best way I can explain it is that my magic can cause reality to behave slightly differently, provided I can make it so. In this town, with all the time-related weirdness, I managed to teach myself a few tricks. It wasn't that hard. I just had to make my present state of being," Wynn motioned to her body. She seemed at least slightly proud, "something constant, after that, I could sort of decide what variables I wanted to bring with me, and here we are."

"Are you a time mage?" Grace asked, her expression turning sour.

"Not at all, I couldn't do much to time outside of here. I'm only able to manipulate it because it's not flowing they way it does on the outside," she said.

"But how did you manage this trapped in that temple?" Zavid demanded, suddenly suspicious. Something seemed very wrong about this story.

"Well the thing is, the month timer only started when I woke up," Wynn explained.

"But you were out cold on that stone circle," Zavid responded in kind.

"I couldn't move, but I could think, and I could use my magic to understand my surroundings as best I could. I pieced as much as I could together that way. I guess you two were lucky to get me out of it," she said, with a slight smile, which quickly faded. "But that reminds me, I need to get out of here, I've got some unfinished business with an old enemy.

"All right, you know our mage guild is looking for that type of person," Zavid said, with a reassuring smile.

"Well I'm still not clear on what a mage guild is, but given that I'm not even sure of the year, I guess I'll stick with you two until I have a good reason not to..." Wynn muttered, as the three made their way to the train station.

* * *

**8 June X820, Streets of Estrecho, Fiore, 6PM.**

"Master Margaret!" Cal called out, as he, Elya and Lunick approached the master and her companion.

"Hey Cal, I hope the mission was a success," Margaret said, walking over to the trio. "And who is this?"

"The name's Lunick!" Lunick said, a cheesy grin on his face, as he forcibly shook Margaret's hand.

"Good to meet you, are you looking to join the guild?" Margaret asked, with a forced smile.

"You bet!" The boy declared, striking a pose.

Margaret looked over to Cal and Elya who both conveyed a noverbal approval.

"All right, I think I have the guild mark stamp on me..." Margaret muttered, taking it out of her cloak. Where do you want it, and what color?

"I want it gold, and on my forehead!" Lunick declared, causing Elya to facepalm, and Cal to laugh.

"Heh, wild one, that kid," Cal said, as Margaret did a double take but followed Lunick's instructions.

"There are some other new recruits at the guild hall, you should meet them," Margaret said, with Adenna giving an approving nod in the background. "All right, now for dinner," Margaret finished, her companion in tow.

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore, 6:05 PM.**

"This is Phoenix Gear? Ashelia asked, as she, Hazel, and Esie climbed the stairs and saw the massive hall above them. "I don't think I've ever seen a guild hall this close up," she said, suddenly a bit humbled.

"It's not quite so impressive inside," Hazel said. "Our new master trying to get money together, it's working, but we haven't replaced anything yet," she explained, as the trio entered the building, to find less magical might than Hazel had expected; rather, a shouting match between mages that she didn't recognize, a black haired woman and a brunette, who was furiously smoking.

"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Valeria shouted out, as Erika shot her a look. "And don't smoke inside!" She shouted, as she punched the latter, which Erika shrugged off.

"I've already told you, Margaret said I could," Erika sighed, as she dragged the cigarette, nearly burnt to the filter, stubbed it out, and managed to trick-shoot it into the nearest garbage can, nearly fifteen feet away.

"And here you were, going on about how I'm some stupid loser because I've never had a beer!" Valeria shouted, genuinely offended.

"It's okay..." Penny muttered. curled up in a ball away from the argument.

"And what makes it okay?!" Demanded Valeria "This asshole decided that my good decisions were a joke to her, how is that funny?" She demanded.

"It's not my fault you can't take a damn joke!" Erika retorted.

"You know, there's a pretty easy way to settle this..." Cal laughed, with an evil grin.

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Master's Quarters, Estrecho, Fiore, 6:20 PM.**

"Well you were right about that noodle place," Margaret said between slurps of noodles, with white sauce and processed ham. It should have been disgusting, and yet the flavors mixed together in exactly the right way.

"Hey, thank me later, it was your idea to get wine drunk on top of it!" Adenna laughed, sipping a wineglass in time.

"Well thanks for that," Margaret blushed. God, Adenna looked hot, slightly overdressed, and coming too close to spilling her noodles with every scoop. The wine didn't seem to get her drunk, even though she'd had a good four glasses. Margaret guessed it had to be her height and experience combined.

"Well, I'm glad we had today to spend together," Adenna said, with a genuine smile. "I'll be taking tomorrow off, but we've got to do this again, next time I'll think of something."

"Sounds great," agreed Margaret, as Adenna finished her noodles and walked across the way to the apartments. Margaret pulled out her pipe, and began to smoke it, until she heard a knock at the inner door of the house. "Adenna?" She asked, opening the door only to be met with a brunette her height.

"Are you Phoenix Gear's master?" Violet asked.

"Yes..."

"There's some things you need to know, immediately."

* * *

**A/N: A bit of a longer update today, but a lot needed to happen. Hope this sets off the fires of speculation, and I promise to get done with the intro arc in two more chapters. Stick around for even more crazy!**

**This chapter's contest winner is: Insane Boi! **

**Congratulations and thanks to all who submitted; the runner up will also be contacted.**

**Next contest: All rules apply, and I'm looking for an OC who is a thieving, magic-wielding treasure hunter, who will be among the villains of the next arc. They should have a bit of a reason to steal, and to operate in tandem with a specific faction which I will explain upon request, other than that, go wild!**

**One final note: OC submissions for Phoenix Gear proper are now competitive, as 21 OCs have been received and accepted, and four remain pending. This means that the remaining four spots can be filled by either the pending creators. All of that said, Until Next Time! **

**Artemis Tua created by Green Overlord.**

**Violet Cross created by Annjames**

**Other Ibex Skull Mages created by The Impostor**

**Wynnefried "Wynn" Forst created by Yngvarr Frey**


	7. Time Warps and Magical Terror

**A/N: The penultimate chapter of the introductory arc. I made it a little bit shorter because it's just setting the stage for the first arc's conclusion. Tell me what you think in terms of chapter length...**

**Special thanks to Hofund for helping edit large portions of the chapter and getting me back to writing it at all.**

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Master's Quarters, Estrecho Fiore, 6:20 PM.**

"And? What's this about?" Margaret asked, as coolly as she could.

"Do you...respect the New Magic Council?" Violet asked, pausing between each word as if she wasn't sure she wanted to ask.

"I suppose so," Margaret replied, perplexed but keeping her composure. "I mean, it's better than what was there before."

"Good, then I think I can trust you with this," Violet responded. "How much do you know about the renegotiations?"

"I'll be honest, I've only been Master of this guild for two weeks, I'm not sure how much I actually know," Magaret explained.

"Well, you don't have much time. Ibex Skull is attempting to storm it with a concentrated assault, in Topaz."

"Just over in the IAR?" Margaret asked.

"Exactly."

"And how do you know this?" Margaret questioned, her arms raised, prepared to cast a spell if needed.

"I'm an independent mage who takes down dark guilds; I've been infiltrating Ibex Skull for a few months because they had no competitors in the area...none good enough anyway, that is, until now," Violet explained. "But even as we speak, they're planning this."

"All right, what's going on with 'this'?" Asked Margaret, reasonably sure that the mage wasn't going to catch her by surprise.

"Well, they're planning to disrupt the proceedings and kill anything that moves in the confusion," began Violet.

"Why though? Why the big display?" Margaret wondered aloud.

"Weakens the people's faith in the council and the enforcers. If just one single Dark Guild could do this much damage..." Violet offered.

Margaret nodded. "And you want us to stop them?"

"That's the idea, but I would say it's the easy part..." Violet sighed.

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho Fiore, 6:08 PM.**

"You sure about this?" Penny said, fascinated by the concept.

"Yep, y'all are behind on battles" Cal explained. "It's supposedly a tradition around here, and I think first off, we ought to let the two with a big angry grudge go first."

Erika shot right off her seat, but immediately faltered as she (very prudently) considered the fact that she lacked the magical training she would need to come out on top.

Valeria flexed her mechanical arm, complete with a confident smile and stride. "Well, let's get to it!" She declared, her arm gleaming wickedly and morphing as if answering her, and took a swipe at Erika.

"Stop! Wait!" Erika managed to avert the need to have her arm stitched back on, but was still grazed by the blade as she hurriedly ingested the fire from her lighter.

"Fire Devil's Rage!"

The resulting fireball enveloped Valeria, but seemed to do little more than impede the more experienced mage, whose arm glowed orange.

"That's a beautiful flame...for a barbecue. Beating up the local clergy isn't everything, you know," Valeria laughed as a magic circle formed above her head. "Magnen Rain."

Hunks of steel protruded from the circle, and launched themselves at Erika, who dodged rather inelegantly.

"Well, this has been fun..." Valeria said, taking note of Erika's off-balance pose, even as the steel around Erika, both the ones she had dodged and the ones still in front of her converged on her.

The short-haired woman fell to the ground, the magnets keeping her pinned.

Valeria called off the steel and looked at Cal, who had been watching with what looked like an amused expression.

Cal smiled. "Well, you two will fit in perfectly."

Erika got up, a smile on her face. "That was awesome!" She shouted, sincerely. "I didn't know magic like that existed! C'mon, tell me about it!"

Valeria was taken aback. This woman was making fun of her not ten minutes ago, and here she was, being impressed. "Wait, I thought you were going to go on about how stupid I was. You hit your head?"

"There's this thing called ribbing, you know," Erika explained with a big grin. "A bit of a roast is how you become friends with someone where I come from."

Valeria decided that wherever that was, it would not be in her travel plans. "It's not really like that for me, I've not had too many friends in some time."

"Well, you can start with me, if you'd like. Everything has to begin somewhere," Erika said, extending her hand.

Valeria could see that there was no malice or intended subversion in Erika's manner or voice. This was as genuine as it got. Valeria shook it. "Deal," She said, "just don't smoke too close to me.

Erika sighed in an exaggerated, joking manner. "All right, all right..."

* * *

**8 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Master's Quarters, Estrecho Fiore, 6:20 PM.**

"Okay, let's see if I have this straight. Dealing with one of the most notorious Dark Guilds in the region is the EASY part?" Margaret managed, slightly worried at Violet's words.

"I assume you're aware of the New Balam Alliance?" Violet asked Margaret, who nodded.

Violet continued. "Well, as you may have guessed, Ibex Skull is allied with one of the three members in the alliance. That is, Lost Horizon."

"Lost Horizon?"

"Yes. I'm afraid I don't have all the details of their operations, as I don't have the clearance and trying anything would raise too many questions, but what I do know is that Lost Horizon has endorsed this mission, and has sent a few mages as aid," Violet went on. "Specifically, a mage who is an Angel Slayer, by the name of Altair, mentioned fighting one of your people. As a result, Lost Horizon now believes that your guild presents a credible threat to Ibex Skull, or at least their current most important operation. They have also been given an unidentified mage on loan, who wears a black cloak. There are three others on the way."

"So what I'm hearing is that we're up against something big, and it won't end even after all this mess," Margaret affirmed.

"I'd say so, yes. As far as I know, Altair and Lost Horizon behind him is the biggest threat, he's one of Lost Horizon's strongest and is quite powerful, one of the 'Ten Great Captains', the others are going to be underlings, weaker but not by too much. Not sure about the guy in the cloak though..." Violet finished.

"All right, and you're hoping we'll take them on? AND win?" Margaret asked.

"Yes. Lost Horizon will consider it an affront, but you'll have the Council backing you up if they try to attack. If anything, the Council will owe you a very big debt."

"Deal...though I'm not sure where you get that confidence of yours." Margaret sighed, with a smile. When they got through this, IF they got through this, it would pay big if nothing else. "What do you suggest I do?"

"Get your strongest people together, and make sure you're in Topaz by 3 PM on the tenth of June. I'll try to botch my job, it should be easy after that...well, easy to figure out what to do next, at least," Violet explained. "I'll head back now, please make sure you're ready," she finished quickly, as she slipped out of a window.

* * *

**8 June X820, Ibex Skull Guild Hall, Ishvan Autonomous Region, 6:50 PM.**

"What's going on, Castor?" Violet asked the short, bowl-cutted mage in the velvet suit.

"Altair's reinforcements, they're crazy," Castor said, motioning to three figures whom Diego was questioning at the master's table. One was dressed as a pharaoh, with no shirt, exposing his "dad bod," and an odd white and red crown. Another seemed to be an intense-looking woman with pink hair in intricate tails and a gothic dress not far from Sherry's. The third was cleaning a knife, with slicked back hair and a leather jacket, with a slightly faltering smile on his face.

"What do you know about them?" Asked Violet.

"Well, as far as I know, all of them used to be masters of their own dark guilds, small ones, but still," Castor explained.

Violet sighed inwardly. "Well, it's clear that our overlords aren't taking too many chances with this."

"Well they could have sent captains," muttered Castor.

"Not really," Altair explained. "Half the time, our forces are on different contients; Lost Horizon is a bit decentralized, it's a two-edged sword, as you see here."

Violet sighed with minor relief. "All right," she thought, "things could be worse."

* * *

**8 June X820, Harveytown Station, Southern Fiore, 7:00 PM.**

"So wait, when is the next train?" Wynn muttered, as the schedule shifted, displaying different times and towns in era after era.

"Well that's the thing..." Grace sighed. "We'll need to determine _when _we're getting off, as well as where. Thankfully, there's a service for that," Grace explained as she walked up to a box office, Zavid and Wynn confused, but in tow.

The attendant at the counter looked, above all else, tired. She was blonde, wore overalls and a simple green ball cap, and simply seemed overwhelmed. Something told Grace that the change in time had affected her profoundly.

"What time do you need?" She sighed.

"We need to get to June 8th, X820," Grace said.

The attendant handed her three tickets. "We hope you had fun in Harveytown," She managed, wiht a halting strain in her voice.

Grace could feel the tickets pulsating with energy, as she handed one to each of her companions. "All right, let's get back to the guild."

Zavid, Grace, and Wynn embarked, and went on to the train station's first platform. The tickets themselves seemed to create a 'zone' of sorts. The station itself seemed to stabilize, as the setting became modern to Zavid and Grace, and yet foreign still to Wynn.

"Is this what your time looks like?" Wynn asked, as she looked at the brick set against electrical-lacrimal signs, vending machines, and plastic seats.

"More or less," Zavid affirmed, as a train approached. "Trains have become fairly important since the X700s or so. Konzerns, or railway companies, have become essential for travel."

The train stopped, and the coaches' mechanical doors opened. Zavid and Grace effortlesly climbed the stairs into a coach, while Wynn attempted, but was immediately shot back, reality flickering for a brief moment.

Zavid and Grace ran off the train. "Shit, she's trapped here," Zavid sighed.

* * *

**8 June X820, Ibex Skull Guild Hall, Ishvan Autonomous Region, 6:50 PM.**

"Well I don't see how this matters much..." The pink-haired dark mage sighed as Diego brought out the same briefing material.

"Marianne," Altair began.

"Yes Altair?" the pink-haired woman asked.

"Kindly shut the fuck up." He muttered, with his most pierceing look possible.

"I'm not so sure. What if Fiore turns against the council over this?" The leather jacket wearer said, giving Marianne a confused look.

"That's the idea Jack," The chubby Pharaoh agreed, with a yawn.

"Exactly, Oz," Altair affirmed. What is key here is that we seem effective, and that the council in turn seems powerless to stop us. As a result, the goal here is to kill, and to kill as many as possible. Thankfully, Gildarts Clive, Fiore's Representative on the Council, is currently at their main headquarters, so we didn't think there would be much trouble..."

"Before a few days ago, we didn't really have much competition for it, but as Altair noted, Phoenix Gear seems to be getting stronger. While we have no reason to believe that they know about our plan, we've brought you on to be safe," Diego explained. "The issue here is that we don't know, so we're making sure we're ready fo what, if anything, Phoenix Gear throws at us."

"And that's where we come in," Agreed Oz, with a dark smile.

* * *

**8 June X820, Harveytown Station, Southern Fiore, 7:00 PM.**

"Wait, I thought that you could leave as you wanted," Zavid Muttered, after another attempt to board the train failed.

"I thought I could too, I can manipulate how this town's curse affects me, after all," Wynn agreed.

Zavid glanced over at Grace, who was herself reverting to her appearance which Zavid recognized as modern. At the moment, she seemed to be around 40, with a bit of white in the deep blue, and visible smile lines. "I don't suppose we could leave her behind? We do need to be back at the guild soon."

Zavid scowled. "She saved our lives, and you want her trapped in here, possibly forever? Plus, what if that thing she was talking about is still around? Shouldn't we have someone who knows about it on our side?"

Wynn's downward expression perked up. "I think I might know why too!" She said, with a sudden burst of confidence.

"Oh?" Zavid offered.

"Right, so I think I might have been in there from a long time ago, and so my energy signature is from then, instead of when this train is taking us, so what if I modified it that way?" Wynn asked.

"Seems as good an idea as any," Agreed Grace. "We came from X820."

Wynn set to work, the strange characters briefly enveloping her body. After a few seconds, she emerged, seemingly unchanged.

"What did you..." Zavid wondered aloud.

"I took about 700 years into my 'personal time,'" she explained, with a wave of her arm, as the three embarked on the train, only to be ejected again.

"Oh come on!" Wynn shouted, finally annoyed.

* * *

**9 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore, 10:30 AM.**

Margaret looked on with interest at the five new mages Adenna was taking on all at once. She understood that her companion was one of the stronger mages, but given what was on display here, she was more optimistic about her guild's S-Class than ever before.

"Hurricane Buster!" Marina Shouted, as a small storm cloud flowed out from both of her arms, sending the punishing wind and rain outward, which Adenna seemed to almost flow through, as she prepared her own counterattack:

"Buddy Bloom Burst!" Adenna countered, as a sunflower-like construct sprouted from the ground, pointed directly at Marina, and sprayed explosive seeds in a brilliant burst, downing the other redhead.

"Feather Mayhem!" Ashelia declared, transforming into her bird-like form. The feathers slashed wildly around Adenna's flower, and though the work could be called sloppy, the sunflower was torn to shreds.

"Rose Thorn Rush!" As Ashelia came in for a strike, Adenna took another stance and ensnared the blonde mage with her spell, who also fell to the ground.

"Comet Dash!" Lunick flew in, with an uncontrolled rush of light magic, ready to blitz. He seemed to make it work at first, with Adenna on the ground, then, it burst to reveal that who they thought was Adenna was simply a doll made of moss.

"Nice try!" Adenna laughed as she seemingly rose from the floor, and gave Lunick a solid kick to the head, taking him out as well.

"Snow God's Blackout!" Came a soft voice, as the area was suddenly taken over with black snow.

"Not as bad as it was..." Adenna Muttered, as she held out her hand. "Sporalysis," a yellow powder emerged, and seemed to shake Penny enough that she called off her magic, and Adenna in kind conjured a thorn bush around her.

That just left Nao, what exactly did _he _have?

"Fairy Pulse!" He shouted out, as a few specks across Margaret's vision seemed to flicker, and for a brief moment, everything was golden light.

Adenna still stood after the blast, but she seemed to feel that strike, if nothing else.

"Damn it, thought that would work better..." Nao sighed.

Adenna smiled. "It was a good effort," she affirmed, before trapping Nao in a hollow root system, the same she'd hidden herself in not long before.

Margaret left her seat. "That was great, you all gave your best," She said, with a big smile. "Adenna's one of our strongest mages, so there's no shame in losing to her, that said, I need to talk to her specifically for a bit, help yourself to anything around, but stay close," the master explained, while she and Adenna went into the former's office.

"What's up?" Asked Adenna.

"Do you know anything about a dark guild called Ibex Skull?" Margaret questioned.

"Yeah, they're a moderately strong dark guild about 6 or 7 miles north of here. Why are you worried about them now?"

"Last night, someone told me that they'd be attacking the Council Building in Topaz tomorrow, trying to kill everyone at the renegotiations. We're supposed to stop it, we are a legal guild after all."

"I understand, and we need a team together," Adenna said, with a steely resolve.

"Right, do you know who we can get on short notice?" Margaret asked, knowing her companion always watched the requests like a hawk.

"The good news is all of the mages except for Zavid and Grace are out on pretty short-term jobs right now, so we can get most everyone together by this afternoon, I have a date tonight, but I'll get myself to bed early enough for tomorrow, I'll also pass this on to the Rune Knights to see if they can help."

"Great. Adenna, you're a life saver," Margaret sighed, as she got out some paper and began furiously writing an explanatory speech.

* * *

**9 J****une X820, Harveytown Station, Southern Fiore,**** 11:00 AM**

"How does this keep happening?" Zavid wondered aloud, as he awoke to find Wynn still attempting to board the train, Grace still asleep several feet to his right.

"Well, I have one more theory, but it's a long shot..." Wynn Sighed.

"And what's that?" Zavid asked.

"Well I've only aged a month since going under, and I woke up in whatever this place is. What if I was asleep for longer than 700 years, and I'm being read as trying to enter the past instead of the future?" she offered.

"We've tried everything else, we may as well."

Wynn covered herself with runes once more, and stepped out. "My best guess is around 200 years, I hope this works..." She sighed, as Zavid woke Grace, and the three entered the train. This time, it worked, the three entered the train.

Zavid looked down at his tickets. "This is odd..." He muttered.

"What?" Grace asked, as she looked over at the tickets, a good ten years older than the last Zavid had checked.

"According to this, the ticket is good onto Pergrande, rather than just to Crocus. More than that, the transfer is in Topaz, of all places..."

"Well, at least we're gone from that place," Grace sighed, as she turned her head away from Zavid and Wynn.

* * *

**9 June X820, Phoenix Gear Guild Hall, Estrecho, Fiore, 4 PM**

"All right, thank you all for coming!" Margaret said, from the elevated portion of the main hall, where she stood, Adenna by her side, looking out at the crowd of around 70 mages. The progress was excellent, Ptarmigan was a life saver.

The young master paused for a second, finding the atmosphere tense. She quickly launched into her speech.

"I wish we were together under some happier news. I know that this may sound frightening, but there is a dark guild presence in the region, and they will attempt to undermine the council and everything legal guilds stand for. The only thing that stands between that is us. Tomorrow, we, as a guild, must go to Topaz, and protect the council at all costs. I know I'm just a girl from Iceberg, but I believe that our hearts are united in this. Here is a guild that threatens our way of life, and the peace we work every day to keep, and I believe I speak for everyone here when I say we must take action!" Margaret declared, as she took her seat, as a slient pall fell over the crowd.

At this point, Adenna stood up. "I will fight with you, master," she said, with a warm smile.

Hazel rose in the same moment, guilt plain to see on her blushing face. "I'll do what I can."

At this point, the rest of the guild rose, and even Esie, coward that he normally was, walked up to Margaret, and for once, smiled. "I'll do it, master," he affirmed.

"All right, now time to talk strategy..." Margaret began.

* * *

**10 June X820, Outside of Council Action Building, Topaz, Ishvan Autonomous Region 2:30 PM.**

"And to recap, we don't have access to the building itself, we're just occupying the streets; hopefully, we'll stave off their forces before they'll even reach the building, and the Knights have the inside locked down," Margaret reiterated, as she turned back to the building, and cast a dark blue shroud of light over it, before noticing a shadow block some of the sunlight. Instinctively, she looked up, and immediately regeretted it. "Wyverns..." She sighed.

* * *

"We may as well get walking back to Estrecho..." Zavid sighed, as the three disembarked from the train, and into the crowded Streets.

"I wonder what's gotten people so alert today," Wynn mused, as she looked through the city streets at the Rune Knights and Mages filling the area.

"Say, aren't these mages ours?" Grace, finally in a more recognizable state, muttered. "And who are they?" She asked, pointing a few blocks away, at Ibex Skull's first line of defense.

* * *

**A/N: Two whole months... I'm sorry, life stuff just sort of kept piling up, and I had to keep putting off progress on the story. I've finally gotten it in recognizable form, and here we are. Hopefully, chapter 8 will be a bit quicker. Once again, special thanks to Hofund for keeping me motivated and editing some of the chapter. Lastly, the previous contest winner is... Nobody. No one sent an OC. I'll hold off on that OC for a couple more updates to avoid it getting stale, and I'll add a whole new contest. This one is big, so I'm hoping people get excited about it.**

**Next Contest: The rule forbidding children of canon characters doesn't apply to this contest. In fact, your submission _must_ have been raised by Erza and Lucy. They can be any gender, but must have been adopted as a toddler, and been in a dangerous place before then. They must also be 20 years old, and wield a planar magic. I'll give you more information about Planar Magic if you want to hear more. **

**Various Lost Horizon Mages created by The Impostor.**


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